A North Korean man has crossed the heavily fortified demilitarized zone to the South. The apparent defection is unusual because most people escape via China, not the heavily guarded border separating the two Koreas.

The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the military identified and tracked the individual near the central-west section of the military demarcation line and conducted a “guiding operation” before taking the person into custody Thursday night.

A North Korean man was taken into custody by the South Korean military after crossing the heavily fortified border between the two countries, according to the South’s Ministry of National Defense.