North Korean investigators have also concluded that King crossed deliberately and illegally, with the intent to stay in the North or in a third country, state news agency KCNA said.
It did not address whether it had heard more details from North Korea.
As an active-duty soldier he might appear to qualify as a POW, given that the United States and North Korea technically remain at war.
The 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
Factors including King's decision to cross into North Korea of his own free will, in civilian attire, appear to have disqualified him from POW status, U.S. officials have said.
Persons:
Travis King, Pyongyang's, King, KCNA, Myron Gates, Soo, hyang Choi, Josh Smith, Idrees Ali, Grant McCool, Stephen Coates
Organizations:
U.S . Army, Joint Security Area, Korean People's Army, ABC, Pentagon, United Nations Command, UNC, U.S ., Korean, Force, U.S, South Korean, Thomson
Locations:
SEOUL, North Korea, U.S, South Korea, ., DPRK, United States, Washington