{"id":"ri-il-gyu","name_en":"Ri Il-gyu","name_ko":"리일규","aliases":["Ri Il-gyu"],"wikidata":"Q127625979","wikipedia":null,"image":null,"born":{"date":"1972","place":"Pyongyang"},"died":null,"status":{"value":"defected","as_of":"2023-11-01","source_url":null},"gender":"male","rank":null,"roles":[],"family":[],"health":[],"physical":{"height_cm":null,"weight_kg":null},"sanctions":[],"summary":"Counselor for Political Affairs at the North Korean Embassy in Havana who defected with his wife and child in November 2023, making him the highest-ranking diplomat to escape since 2016. In a July 2024 interview, he revealed high-level regime corruption and Kim Jong Un's personal rage over South Korea's diplomatic normalization with Cuba.","summary_source":"research","notable":[],"tags":["defector","diplomat"],"family_resolved":[]}