North Korea’s Ministry of State Security has ratcheted up its efforts to arrest residents making international calls with Chinese mobile phones. In one recent incident, agents reportedly disguised themselves as goat herders to try and make an arrest.
"On April 5 in Hyesan City, two residents were nearly apprehended while making a call to South Korea. The MSS agents were disguised as goat herders, and apparently the disguise was quite believable,” a source in Ryanggang Province told Daily NK on April 12.
"The residents are said to have narrowly escaped after fleeing over three mountains. But that was not the end of the ordeal, as there were many people (presumably other MSS agents) wearing ordinary clothing waiting at the foot of the mountains as well," the source added.
The incident suggests that MSS agents are diversifying their methods to catch residents who head deep into the mountains to make calls.
"There are few people now who are naive enough to make calls within their homes, and most people make them nearby, high in the mountains. Being well aware of this situation, the MSS agents seem to be adapting their methods as well," said a separate source in Ryanggang Province.
"But I couldn't imagine that they would disguise themselves as goat herders or ordinary people to crack down on mobile phone users. The methods of the MSS agents are evolving," the source noted.
<Source: DailyNK, Kim Chae Hwan>
