Seoul: South Korean authorities have taken a North Korean soldier into custody after he crossed the heavily fortified inter-Korean border, in what officials believe may be a defection.

According to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, the soldier crossed the border on Tuesday night and was secured by the South Korean military in the central section of the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ).

"The military secured one North Korean soldier in the central front Tuesday night and relevant authorities are currently investigating the details," Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a message to the media, according to Yonhap.

The incident is being investigated by South Korean authorities, who will determine the circumstances surrounding the border crossing and whether the soldier intended to defect.

Cross-border defections through the heavily guarded land frontier between the two Koreas are relatively uncommon. The border region is densely forested, heavily mined and closely monitored by military personnel on both sides.

Most North Koreans who flee the isolated country typically travel through China before reaching a third country, such as Thailand, and eventually making their way to South Korea.

Under South Korean procedures, North Korean arrivals are generally handed over to intelligence authorities for screening and questioning before being integrated into society.

According to South Korea's Unification Ministry, more than 34,000 North Koreans have resettled in the South since the division of the Korean Peninsula following the Korean War.

Government data shows that 236 North Koreans arrived in South Korea in 2024, with women accounting for 88 per cent of the total.

North Korea has long condemned defectors, often referring to those who flee the country as "human scum."