North Korea arrests American student

for 'hostile act'

(CNN)A University of Virginia college student from Cincinnati has been
detained in North Korea after being accused of a "hostile act" against the
government.
Otto Frederick Warmbier was detained January 2 in Pyongyang, according to
Young Pioneer Tours, the China-based travel company that organized his trip.
The company's website says it "provides budget tours to destinations your
mother would rather you stayed away from."
North Korean state media said Warmbier, who reportedly entered North Korea
on a tourist visa, is accused of carrying out "a hostile act against the DPRK,"
referring to the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea.

55 photos: Kim Jong Un and North Korea's military

Warmbier entered the country "for the purpose of bringing down the foundation
of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the U.S. government," the
report said.
The tour group said Warmbier's family has been informed and it is working with
the U.S. State Department, the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the
Swedish Embassy, which carries out some consular services for U.S. citizens in
North Korea, to address the arrest.
Warmbier is a third-year student studying commerce at the University of
Virginia, according to The Cavalier Daily, the school's student newspaper.
School spokesman Anthony de Bruyn would only say that the school "has been
in touch with Otto Warmbier's family and will have no additional comment at this
time."
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a 2016 GOP presidential candidate, tweeted Friday that
"North Korea's arrest of an Ohio college student is inexcusable & he should be
released & returned immediately."
North Korea's arrest of an Ohio college student is inexcusable & he should be
released & returned immediately. https://t.co/nfvkCwT4iB
John Kasich (@JohnKasich) January 22, 2016
U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup, whose district includes the area where Warmbier
went to high school,also tweeted Friday that his office was trying to contact the
State Department "to assist however possible in getting Mr. Warmbier home."
The North Korean government has arrested and accused other U.S. citizens of
similar charges in the past.
The U.S. Embassy in Seoul says it's aware of the reports of the student's arrest.

Alleged American held prisoner in North Korea speaks 02:22

North Korean officials recently allowed CNN to interviewanother American
prisoner.
The man identified himself as Kim Dong Chul, a naturalized American, who said
he used to live in Fairfax, Virginia.
"I'm asking the U.S. or South Korean government to rescue me," Kim said
during an interview at a hotel in the North Korean capital.
Kim, 62, said he was arrested in October while meeting a source to obtain a
USB stick and camera used to gather military secrets.
CNN's Will Ripley, Zahra Ullah and K.J. Kwon contributed to this report.