American parents sue N. Korea over son’s death

The parents of Otto Warmbier, an American college student who was held captive in North Korea, filed a lawsuit alleging Kim Jong Un’s regime “brutally tortured and murdered” their son while in detention.

The North forced Warmbier, 22, to “falsely ‘confess’ to an act of subversion on behalf of the United States government,” and tortured him for a year and a half without letting him communicate with his family, the suit filed Thursday in Washington, D.C., claims.

North Korea labeled Warmbier as “a prisoner of war and a war criminal,” after the regime reportedly demanded the U.S. remove sanctions as a condition for his release, court documents say.

“Kim (Jong Un) and his regime have portrayed themselves as innocent, while they intentionally destroyed our son’s life,” Fred Warmbier, Otto’s father, said in a statement to The Washington Post. “This lawsuit is another step in holding North Korea accountable for its barbaric treatment of Otto and our family.”

Warmbier was traveling to North Korea with a tour group and was detained at the airport in Pyongyang in January 2016.

State media reported “he entered the country under the guise of being a tourist and plotted against North Korea under the manipulation of the U.S. government,” according to the suit.

Warmbier was released in June 2017. He arrived in Cincinnati on June 13 while in a coma. Doctors concluded he had brain damage, and he died days later.

President Donald Trump has vowed to discuss human rights with Kim Jong Un during their meeting in late May.