By Alex Jensen
SEOUL
China said Thursday that Pyongyang had expressed regret over the killing of four of its citizens during a robbery by a North Korean in China’s Helong border city earlier this week.
State news agency Xinhua had reported that the suspected army deserter had committed the acts after crossing the border "in search of food."
The soldier was reported to have been detained after killing the four in the border town of Nanping, overlooking North Korea's North Hamkyong Province on Dec. 28, but China's foreign ministry spokesman said that he had died of his injuries.
"After the incident occurred, the Chinese police immediately launched a manhunt operation. During the operation, the killer was shot and died later after medical treatment failed to revive him," spokesman Hong Lei said in a statement posted on the ministry's website late Wednesday.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported Thursday that China had lodged a rare diplomatic protest over the killing, but appeared keen to avoid further straining ties with its only treaty ally, Pyongyang, describing the border incident as "an individual criminal case."
"The DPRK [North Korea] side expressed its regret that such an incident happened, and conveyed its sympathy to the family of the victims," Hong said in Thursday's statement.
"This is an individual criminal case," he added, saying that both nations had carried out "follow-up investigations and [were] dealing with the case in accordance with the law."
In North Korea, all able-bodied young men must fulfill 10 years of military service, during which food shortages at army camps have forced some to cross into China.
Around 30 percent of the population of China’s Yanbian autonomous prefecture, Jilin province, consists of Koreans.
In Dec. 2013, a young North Korean defector in his 20s killed an elderly couple in China’s Yanji border city and stole 20,000 yuan ($3,210). He was later caught after fleeing to Beijing.
