His life in North Korea must have been a hard one. He is 62 and looks 82! Guilt weighs heavily upon his brow.
BTW, if he were indeed kidnapped, he'd be making a beeline home to a hero's welcome as a returning POW and bring his wife with him. However, IMO, his fear confirms he did indeed go AWOL.
I've read through all of the stories on this guy...from his family and high school friends...to members of his unit. Not a single one ever said that they thought he was capable of desertion. This has left me with the thought that he simply was caught and dragged off across the border. We know the Korean regularly did this with Japananese citizens. And we all know the story of the two GI's who were hacked to death while their work party was clearing the DMZ area. I've always suspected that he (a naive enlisted guy) simply underwent brain washing and eventually came to believe anything they told him.
After all these years, its not even worth our time to go after him or try him. Even if you did...all he has to say is that he was brain-washed...and the whole courtcase goes down the drain. The guy and his wife have nothing...no pension, no cash fund, no social security, etc. The Japanese government is likely providing some kinda retirement assistance for his wife...who was kidnapped. My guess is that the couple will sit there for six months...and eventually fly into Japan very quietly and live out their lives there.
Maybe he got tired of eating dirt in the peoples' paradise.