Washington, D.C.- North Korea has released Otto Warmbier, the American student serving a 15-year prison term with hard labor for alleged subversion, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Tuesday.
The 22-year-old University of Virginia undergraduate, from Cincinnati, Ohio, was convicted in March 2016 of attempting to steal a propaganda banner from a restricted area of his hotel at the request of an acquaintance.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison with hard labor after a tearful one-hour trial.
In a statement, the State Department said Warmbier was “en route to the U.S. where he will be reunited with his family,” adding it would have no further comment on his case, citing privacy concerns.
It said the department “continues to have discussions with [North Korea] regarding the three other American citizens who are detained.”
The Washington Post reported that Warmbier was medically evacuated from the isolated state in a coma, citing his parents, although this report could not be independently confirmed by NBC News. The student was evacuated via a U.S. military base in Sapporo, Japan, the newspaper said.
Warmbier had been staying at the Yanggakdo International Hotel, which is located on an island in a river that runs through Pyongyang, the capital. It is common for sections of tourist hotels to be reserved for North Korean staff and off-limits to foreigners.
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, but the U.S. State Department strongly advises against it.
The announcement came as former NBA player Dennis Rodman paid a return visit to North Korea.
Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) said he hoped the privacy of Warmbier’s family would be respected “in the weeks and months ahead.”
In a statement, he said: “My first priority will be continuing to support Otto, his parents and family, whose strength and love of family inspire me every time I speak with them. North Korea’s despicable actions in detaining and holding Otto were unacceptable and must be condemned. ”
Article originally published on nbcnews.com
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