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NBC News
15 hours ago
- NBC News
A Purple Heart vet who self-deported to Korea says he feels his PTSD is now worse
A Purple Heart veteran who self-deported to South Korea last week after being targeted with detention and deportation says that he believes his diagnosed PTSD has worsened since arriving in a country he hasn't been to in decades. Sae Joon Park, 55, a green-card holder who served in the Army more than 30 years ago, says he was told to leave the U.S. because of old charges related to drug possession and bail jumping, or a failure to return to court. Park said the offenses trace back to the difficulty he once had dealing with his then-undiagnosed PTSD. 'It just comes out of nowhere. I'll be walking around just thinking about something, I'll just start bawling, just crying nonstop. And I have no control over that,' Park told NBC News from Seoul of his PTSD. 'I've been dealing with it the best I can everyday.' Park, a longtime Hawaii resident, said that for years, he attended annual check-ins with Immigration and Customs Enforcement after being served the removal order over a decade ago. However, in early June, during what he assumed was a regular check-in, ICE agents gave him an ankle monitor and told him that he would face detention and deportation if he failed to leave within three weeks. So Park, hoping to spare his family from further stress, booked a ticket back to his home country. Neither ICE nor the Veterans Affairs Department immediately responded to NBC News' request for comment. In 1989, Park, then-19 years old, joined the armed forces to gain some direction in life, he said. After being deployed to Panama, he was struck by gunfire one day while eating lunch with his platoon, he said. He was eventually evacuated to a military hospital in San Antonio. Park, who was honorably discharged, received a Purple Heart upon returning to the U.S. He said that the physical recovery process took a few months, but the mental toll lingered. And he wasn't quite sure what his symptoms meant. 'I would have a lot of nightmares, with loud noises, I can't watch movies. And being a tough guy, a young kid, I didn't know who to turn to. I didn't know who to tell,' he said. 'I would have to try to find my own ways to deal with it without even sharing it with anyone.' Still, Park said, he's proud of his military service. 'I don't regret joining at all, even getting shot and everything,' he said. 'I do feel that was part of my life story, and it is what made me who I am today.' He says that the new environment, along with being separated from his children and elderly mother, has been difficult on him. And he thinks it's triggered PTSD symptoms that first developed in the military. Park said he's been staying in an Airbnb rental since he arrived in Korea. His two children, who are in their 20s and live in the U.S., check up on him daily. And relatives help him regularly communicate with his mother, who is 85 and was recently diagnosed with dementia. Park said he spent time in Korea as a child and still has family members there, but he does have trouble with the language and daily tasks. He said he's also dealing with what he feels is shame associated with being deported. It's why, Park said, despite his family members in Korea offering to help and expressing excitement to see him, he's been largely keeping to himself. 'I don't want my family to know I got kicked out of the country. … I don't know how they're going to react to that. I don't know if I'm putting anybody to shame being that they're my family members,' he said. 'That's a big part of why I've been avoiding everyone.' After his military service, Park said he turned to drugs to cope with the mental anguish he was dealing with. Eventually, law enforcement arrested him in New York for possession. Park, who pleaded guilty in 2007, did not comply with the conditions of the treatment program in his plea agreement and failed to return to court, leading to a bail-jumping charge. Park went to prison in 2009, serving three years, and was given an order of removal upon his release. 'When you really hit rock bottom, it's so easy to stay sober and quit, which was after I got incarcerated at 40 years old, going to prison, losing my family, losing everything,' he said. 'I started praying every day.' Park also said he was finally diagnosed with PTSD in his 40s, after the Veteran Affairs Department made a check-in call. It was life-changing, he said. 'They reached out to me, questioning me about how I'm doing, and they brought me in and did some tests, and finally realized I don't just have PTSD, I'm maxed out,' he said. 'That's when disability started kicking in, and more help started coming my way.' Park's attorney, Danicole Ramos, said that while the possession of a controlled substance is no longer a deportable offense due to a 2023 decision by 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, Park's bail jumping conviction is still considered an 'aggravated felony,' making it difficult to reopen his immigration case and fight to vacate his removal order. Ramos said he's still hopeful that Park can return to the U.S. The two are calling on the Queens County District Attorney's Office in New York to reopen Park's criminal case and drop the convictions. 'I'm very hopeful. It's one day at a time,' Park said. 'Hopefully I can get back to my family or even have a good life again.'
Daily Mail
20 hours ago
- Daily Mail
More Caribbean horror as New Yorker vanishes in Turks and Caicos after Canadian's mysterious drowning
A New York City man vanished while vacationing in Turks and Caicos after mysteriously leaving his rental in the middle of the night - just weeks after a Canadian tourist was found dead under suspicious circumstances elsewhere in the Caribbean. Brian Tarrence, 51, of Midtown Manhattan, arrived to the coral islands on June 22 for a romantic getaway with his wife of one year, staying at an Airbnb in Grace Bay before their planned return to New York on June 29, as reported by News 12 Westchester. But just three days into the trip, Tarrence mysteriously left the rental while his wife slept - and hasn't been seen since. 'Everything prior to the point where he walked out of that house, he seems fine,' private investigator Carl DeFazio told the local outlet. 'The worst thing is not knowing,' he added. 'Every day that goes by is not good.' On June 22, the couple arrived at world-famous Grace Bay Beach on the northeast coast of Providenciales - a pristine stretch of shoreline famed for its crystal-clear waters, powdery white sand and upscale luxury resorts. Three days later, on June 25, Tarrence and his wife spent the afternoon on a boat before heading to dinner. However, later that night, his wife awoke to find that he was no longer in the rental home. After being notified, the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police reviewed security footage near the Airbnb, which showed Tarrence - wearing a T-shirt, shorts and sneakers - walking toward the tourist-heavy downtown area around 3.30am. 'That's a little bizarre in itself,' DeFazio told News 12, referring to the mystery of why Tarrence left the rental. 'He's in the middle of town. His wife was sleeping.' The area where Tarrence disappeared is 'very safe,' according to the investigator, and the New Yorker had both his cellphone and wallet with him when he left. 'We have him on camera, and he walks into town, and then he basically disappears, and we haven't heard from him since,' he told the outlet. Tarrence's family hired DeFazio as a private investigator to look into the sudden and uncharacteristic disappearance, as he has now been missing for nearly a week. 'So far, we haven't been successful in anything, but we're not giving up hope,' DeFazio said. DeFazio, who is also a former NYPD officer and Marine, has been working to obtain records of the 51-year-old's phone activity during his time on the islands, though he admitted the process has been slow, according to News 12. The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police, who are also investigating the unusual case, have officially listed Tarrence as missing. 'We are trying everything we can,' DeFazio told the outlet. 'We've blanketed the area with photos, put it on social media and all kinds of things.' Police in the British Overseas Territory are deploying all resources to find the New Yorker, including drone scans and thorough reviews of CCTV footage to trace his movements on the night he disappeared, DeFazio shared, as reported by The New York Post. Tarrence's wife plans to stay in Turks and Caicos for now, holding onto hope of finding him. 'What I tell the family in cases like this: Stay positive until you have a reason not to be,' DeFazio said, as reported by The Post. The seasoned investigator, active since the 1990s, said he currently sees no evidence of foul play but isn't ruling out any possibilities. 'He's a smart guy,' he added. 'We don't know what's in his mind or if he did this on his own or if somebody took him in.' DeFazio also praised the island community's support amid Tarrence's disappearance, highlighting how missing persons flyers bearing his photo have been distributed 'everywhere in Turks and Caicos.' Now, Turks and Caicos police are urging anyone with information about Tarrence's disappearance to call 911 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477. The private investigator also praised the island community's support amid Tarrence's disappearance, highlighting how missing persons flyers bearing his photo (pictured) have been distributed 'everywhere in Turks and Caicos' Though the Caribbean remains a top tourist destination, several foreigners have died under suspicious circumstances - ranging from unexplained drownings to mysterious disappearances from even well-guarded beaches. Just last month, a Canadian tourist was found dead on a beach in the Dominican Republic under unexplained circumstances. Dorian Christian MacDonald, 38, of Nova Scotia, Canada, was tragically discovered dead in the waters off a beach in Maimon Bay on June 20 while vacationing in the Dominican Republic's popular Puerto Plata resort town, according to CTV News. The discovery came after he reportedly took a brief late-night walk alone on a beach around 2am, stepping out from his solitary stay at a hotel on the island's north coast. The tragic discovery came after MacDonald reportedly took a brief late-night walk alone on a beach around 2am on June 20, stepping out from his solitary stay at a hotel on the island's north coast (pictured) Tragically, however, that would be the last time MacDonald was seen alive, as just an hour later, a harrowing 911 call was placed reporting a missing person. Both police personnel and Civil Defense - a government agency that supports local law enforcement with naval operations - arrived at the scene, where they discovered his body in the water during high tide just after 4am. According to a GoFundMe page made in MacDonald's honor to help cover expenses, the Canadian tourist died from a sudden and unexpected drowning. Now, MacDonald's family - his mother, sisters, and close friends - are tirelessly working to bring his body back home to Nova Scotia, with the fundraiser launched to support the difficult process of repatriation.
Evening Standard
21 hours ago
- Evening Standard
Wimbledon Order of Play: Day 4 schedule with Jack Draper, Novak Djokovic and Dan Evans in action
Tenant renting Soho flat on AirBnB after secret move to France among £1million of fraud against London council Council tenant rented Soho flat on AirBnB after secret move to France
