North Korea presented a detained American student before the media on Monday in Pyongyang, where he tearfully apologized for attempting to steal a political banner — at the behest, he said, of a member of a church back home who wanted it as a “trophy” — from a staff-only section of the hotel where he had been staying.
North Korea announced in late January it had arrested Otto Warmbier, a 21-year-old University of Virginia undergraduate student. It said that after entering the country as a tourist he committed an anti-state crime with “the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation.”
No details of what kind of charges or punishment Warmbier faces were immediately released.
According to Warmbier’s statement Monday, he wanted the banner with a political slogan on it as a trophy for the church member, who was the mother of a friend.
In previous cases, people who have been detained in North Korea and given a public confession often recant those admissions after their release.
He was arrested while visiting the country with Young Pioneer Tours, an agency specializing in travel to the North, which is strongly discouraged by the U.S. State Department. He had been staying at the Yanggakdo International Hotel, which is located on an island in a river that runs through Pyongyang.
It is common for sections of tourist hotels to be reserved for North Korean staff and off-limits to foreigners.
Warmbier is a native of Ohio and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, while campaigning in New Hampshire as a Republican presidential candidate, called the arrest “inexcusable.” Kasich has urged President Barack Obama to “make every effort to secure Mr. Warmbier’s immediate release and keep (his) family constantly apprised.”
Kasich said North Korea should either provide evidence of the alleged anti-state activities or release Warmbier.
In his comments, Warmbier said he was offered a used car worth $10,000 by a member of the church. He said the church member told him the slogan would be hung on its wall as a trophy. He also said he was told that if he was detained and not returned, $200,000 would be paid to his mother in a way of charitable donations.
Calls to the Friendship United Methodist Church went unanswered Monday.
Warmbier named that as the church his acquaintance belonged to and there is church of that name in his hometown, Wyoming, Ohio.
He said he was also encouraged in his act by the “Z Society” at the University of Virginia, which he said he was trying to join. The magazine of the university’s alumni association describes the Z Society as a “semi-secret ring society” that was founded in 1892 and conducts philanthropy, puts on honorary dinners and grants academic awards.
Warmbier said he accepted the offer of money because his family is “suffering from very severe financial difficulties.”
“I started to consider this as my only golden opportunity to earn money,” he said, adding that if he ever mentioned the involvement of the church, “no payments would come.”
North Korea regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending spies to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the Korean Peninsula.
U.S. tourism to North Korea is legal and virtually all Americans who make the journey return home without incident.
Even so, the State Department has repeatedly warned against travel to the North. Visitors, especially those from America, who break the country’s sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences.
Young Pioneer describes itself on its website as providing “budget tours to destinations your mother would rather you stayed away from.”
The agency, based in China, also has tours to Iran, Cuba, Turkmenistan, Iraq and other former Soviet countries.
After Warmbier’s detention, it stressed in a news release that he was the first of the 7,000 people it has taken to North Korea over the past eight years to face arrest.
“Despite what you may hear, North Korea is probably one of the safest places on Earth to visit,” it says on its website.
In the past, North Korea has held out until senior U.S. officials or statesmen came to personally bail out detainees, all the way up to former President Bill Clinton, whose visit in 2009 secured the freedom of American journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling. Both had crossed North Korea’s border from China illegally.
It took a visit in November 2014 by U.S. spy chief James Clapper to bring home Matthew Miller, who had ripped up his visa when entering the country, and Korean-American missionary Kenneth Bae, who had been incarcerated since November 2012.
Jeffrey Fowle, another U.S. tourist from Ohio detained for six months at about the same time as Miller, was released just before that and sent home on a U.S. government plane.
He left a Bible in a local club hoping a North Korean would find it, which is considered a criminal offense in North Korea.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
sheepdog says
When stupid people do stupid things it is difficult to feel concern for them.
Mike says
When traveling in a foreign country it is best to follow their rules. This is captain obvious.
SATINE says
UNLESS YOU ARE AN ILLEGAL IN THE UNITED STATES, THEN YOU TRY TO CHANGE THOSE RULES…
Joseph Adinolfi says
Why would any U.S. citizen go anywhere North Korea? You have to know these a–holes are going to grab you to try to embarrass our country. Now the government has to jump thru hoops to get him out. Just so I don’t hear a bunch of BS from everyone who reads this comment. I believe that we should just wipe these morons out so we don’t have to deal with this type of crap in the future.
rodney says
but we have a communist/muslimterriorist/coward for a leader. Not Trump/ Bush or Reagan. When we get a leader this will not happen. You are right. about 3 waves of B-52s from Wake or guam with incendiary bombs will take care o f the place. It is a waste of space and they take up too much oxygen that SK needs.
Rick Worthington says
Sending B52s in and bombing the country with incendiary bombs would only work if they hit the N. Korean Government buildings and military establishments – the N. Korean people themselves would undoubtedly rejoice…they’re enslaved, starved and subjucated beyond belief… Their leader is a vile, inhuman piece of you-know-what – and like all communists and socialist leaders, only there for themselves to line their own pockets! Another good reason to NOT vote for the Democrats in the forth-coming election. (Look at who’s running for election….Doesn’t THAT tell everyone something?)
Justin W says
I’m not sure traveling to North Korea is a sign of good judgment.
If this guy had money problems he should have put the cost of the trip to North Korea toward dealing with the problem. This guy sounds like an idiot. If the North Koreans want to keep him in one of their prisons that’s fine with me.
Don Holland says
DITTO!!!
befudled says
Big deal. So he tried to take a banner. It was probably going to be thrown out anyway. Those cry baby north Koreans should just fine him and kick him out. But that’s not what they want. It’s the old getting into the news thing. I guess they got tired of trying to find an actual spy or something so they used this petty charge in a pinch !!
twykes says
What the heck was the idiot doing there anyway. Leave him there no common sense at all.
Schompes says
I agree that any person visiting this God forsaken place should always expect the worse.
marlene says
They figured if iran can do it, so can they. IMPEACH OBAMA-THE-FOREIGN-TRAITOR – nnow!
Rick Worthington says
The guy was and is, a fool !! North Korea is one of, if not the MOST dangerous countries on earth. The leader is a real loose cannon – anyone who can execute his own relatives for a political “reason” has to be dangerous too. The U.S.A needs to watch this Communistic bastard very closely!
Charlene Holt says
Any American that has no more common sense to go to North Korea deserves what he gets. Why Americans go all over the world when there is nothing but chaos all over the world and then go to hollering “to get me out of here”. Why is it so important to go to any foreign country when turmoil is everywhere and a terrorist just waiting to nab someone from this country for no reason except to embarrass this country. Why in the world can’t Americans use their heads………..this country should just leave them there. Right now this includes Mexico………they are a very dangerous place now and we have college kids running down there to party on Spring Break………there is one American girl went down there several years ago and has not been heard from since. Doesn’t that ever soak into any ones brains. Besides there are enough terrorists all over Mexico plus drug cartels that run that country……….even Mexico can’t handle their own problems. There are plenty beautiful places in this country to visit in place of running all over the world and allowing yourself to get into trouble and then involving your country. Use your heads. We have enough of our military in some of these hell holes because they were sent there……..civilians do not have to get involved.
Pat says
This guy looks like an adult. Virginia? I’m surprised by this behavior. Where did he go to school? What did he study. Has he learned anything recently?
Mark Allen says
When these morons go to one of these countries they should be forced to sign paperwork that entrance to any of these countries forfeits their citizenship and the zIp govt is not obligated nor going to work for their release and that form should include all going overseas that if they travel to a friendly country to obtain entrance to these known anti-American havens from that country they see still not going to be rewarded with our help due to their devious plots to get into one of those countries. Good riddance … one less moron that we have to be responsible for!!