American freed, but in coma
An American college student whose parents say has been in a coma while serving a 15-year prison term in North Korea was released and returned to the United States Tuesday as the Trump administration revealed a rare exchange with the reclusive country.
An airplane carrying Otto Warmbier, who's from Ohio, arrived in Cincinnati Tuesday,
Department of State spokeswoman Heather Nauert said former NBA player Dennis Rodman, who is visiting North Korea, had nothing to do with Warmbier's release.
Securing Warmbier's release "was a big priority" for President Donald Trump, who worked "very hard and very closely" with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said.
The detention of Americans, often sentenced to draconian prison sentences for seemingly small offenses in the totalitarian nation, has compounded tensions between Washington and Pyongyang. Three Americans remain in custody.
Warmbier, a 22-year-old University of Virginia undergraduate, was convicted and sentenced in a one-hour trial in North Korea's Supreme Court in March 2016. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison with hard labor for subversion after he tearfully confessed that he had tried to steal a propaganda banner.
Tillerson announced that the State Department secured Warmbier's release at Trump's direction.
Warmbier's parents, Fred and Cindy Warmbier, said they were told their son has been in a coma since his trial, when he was last seen in public, and they had learned of this only one week ago.
"We want the world to know how we and our son have been brutalized and terrorized by the pariah regime" in North Korea, Warmbier's parents said.
The U.S. government accuses North Korea of using such detainees as political pawns. North Korea accuses Washington and South Korea of sending spies to overthrow its government.