Why US war hero was forced to self-deport after living in America for 50 years

US Army veteran Sae Joon Park had been living in the United States for nearly fifty years.

But he has now self-deported to South Korea after US immigration officials warned him he could be detained over a past drug-related conviction.

The green card holder had received the Purple Heart for being wounded in combat.

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Recently, he was told he could not continue living in the US due to President Donald Trump’s strict immigration policies.

So, who is Sae Joon Park? Why did he self-deport from the US? And what do we know about the drug conviction?

Find out below:

Who is the US Army veteran? What happened?

Sae Joon Park is a US Army veteran who had been living in the United States for 48 years.

He recently had to leave the country after immigration authorities gave him three weeks to depart.

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“This really kills me that I just have to drop everything and leave like this,” Park told Hawaii News Now before his departure.

Originally from Seoul in South Korea, Park moved to the US at the age of seven. He received legal permanent residency through a green card.

Growing up, Park said he lacked strong role models but looked up to his uncle, a colonel in the South Korean military. After high school, he decided to join the US Army.

At 19, Park enlisted and served in the 1989 conflict in Panama during the Noriega war.

Soon after completing basic training, he was sent to Panama, not knowing he would be involved in Operation Just Cause, the US invasion to remove Manuel Noriega from power.

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One afternoon, while having lunch with his platoon, Park said Panamanian soldiers opened fire. He began shooting back, but suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back.

For U.S. Army veteran Sae Joon Park, the hardest moment wasn’t combat — it was being asked to leave the only country he’s called home for nearly 50 years.

I called on my colleagues to do the right thing and vote YES on my amendment to give non-citizen veterans a fair shot at due… pic.twitter.com/Cc4qccF5Yb

— Rep. Norma Torres (@NormaJTorres) June 26, 2025

“I realised I was shot,” he told NPR. “So I’m thinking, ‘Oh my God, I’m paralysed.’ And then thinking, ‘Oh my God, I’m not just paralysed. I’m dying right now.’”

Park was later honourably discharged and returned to Los Angeles. There, he struggled with severe post-traumatic stress disorder.

To cope with nightmares and sensitivity to noise, he used marijuana.

In 1995, Park moved to Hawaii, hoping for a fresh start. But over time, he developed an addiction to crack cocaine.

“Drugs had a big control throughout my life, and that’s what eventually got me into trouble with the law and everything,” he said to Hawaii News Now.

Conviction to deportation

In 2009, Sae Joon Park was convicted of drug-related and bail offences. He spent two and a half years in prison.

After completing his sentence, immigration authorities detained him and took away his green card.

Park challenged his deportation in court. As a Purple Heart recipient, he was granted deferred action. This allowed him to stay in the US, provided he regularly reported to immigration officers and stayed sober.

Park has two children in their twenties and helps look after his elderly parents and aunts.

But things changed under Donald Trump’s administration. At a recent meeting with local Ice officers in Hawaii, Park was told he would be detained and deported unless he chose to leave the country on his own.

He was fitted with an ankle monitor and given three weeks to prepare for his departure.

“People were saying, ‘You took two bullets for this country. Like you’re more American than most of the Americans living in America,’” he told Hawaii News Now.

Park spent his last days with friends and family, including his 85-year-old mother, whom he fears he may never see again. He then booked a flight to South Korea.

Under the supervision of Ice officers at Honolulu airport, he said goodbye to his loved ones in tears.

Despite everything, Park remains strong in his belief that his military service was worthwhile.

“Even after everything I went through, I don’t regret joining the military or getting shot,” he told NPR. “It’s part of my life, my journey. It’s made me who I am today.”