\n
US student Otto Warmbier has been freed from jail in North Korea, but his parents say he has been in a coma for a year.<\/p>\n
The US secretary of state said the 22-year-old was on his way home to the US.<\/p>\n
The Warmbier family told US media they had found out only last week that their son has been in a coma since shortly after his trial in March 2016.<\/p>\n
Mr Warmbier was sentenced to 15 years of hard labour for attempting to steal a propaganda sign from a hotel.<\/p>\n
Who is Otto Warmbier?<\/strong>
Otto Warmbier is an economics graduate from the University of Virginia, originally from Cincinnati, Ohio.<\/p>\nHe was in North Korea as a tourist with Young Pioneer Tours when he was arrested on 2 January 2016.<\/p>\n
He gave a televised confession a month later, in which he said he had tried to take the sign as a \u201ctrophy\u201d for a US church, adding \u201cthe aim of my task was to harm the motivation and work ethic of the Korean people\u201d.<\/p>\n
It was not clear whether he had made the statement voluntarily, but foreign detainees in North Korea have previously recanted confessions, saying they were made under pressure.<\/p>\n
After a short trial on 16 March, Mr Warmbier was given a 15-year prison sentence for crimes against the state.<\/p>\n
His parents Fred and Cindy told CNN earlier this month that they had had no contact with their son for more than a year.
They spoke out about their fears for his safety as tensions rose after North Korea carried out missile tests and US warships were deployed to the region.<\/p>\n
What is his condition now?<\/strong>
In a statement, Fred and Cindy said: \u201cOtto has left North Korea. He is on a Medivac flight on his way home.
\u201cSadly, he is in a coma and we have been told he has been in that condition since March 2016. We learned of this only one week ago.\u201d<\/p>\nThey were quoted by the Washington Post as saying they had been told Otto contracted botulism, a rare illness that causes paralysis, soon after his trial in March 2016.<\/p>\n
He was given a sleeping pill, and has been in a coma ever since, the newspaper said.<\/p>\n
Rodman in Pyongyang<\/strong>
Mr Warmbier\u2019s release comes hours after US basketball star Dennis Rodman arrived in North Korea, but it is not clear if the two events are linked.<\/p>\nMr Rodman is a friend of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and has made several visits to the country in recent years.<\/p>\n
He said upon his arrival this time that he was in the country as a private citizen, and \u201cmy purpose is to actually see if I can keep bringing sports to North Korea\u201d.<\/p>\n
Three other US citizens remain in custody in North Korea.<\/p>\n
They are 62-year-old Kim Dong-chul, a Korean-American missionary; Korean-American professor Kim Sang-duk (or Tony Kim); and Kim Hak-song, who worked at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST).<\/p>\n
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, in his statement, said the US state department \u201ccontinues to have discussions\u201d with North Korea over the remaining three detainees.<\/p>\n
He said they would make no further comment on Mr Warmbier \u201cout of respect for the privacy\u201d of his family.<\/p>\n
\u2013<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"US student Otto Warmbier has been freed from jail in North Korea, but his parents say he has been in a coma for a year. The US secretary of state said the 22-year-old was on his way home to the US. The Warmbier family told US media they had found out only last week that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-395539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\n
North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019 - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019 - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"US student Otto Warmbier has been freed from jail in North Korea, but his parents say he has been in a coma for a year. The US secretary of state said the 22-year-old was on his way home to the US. The Warmbier family told US media they had found out only last week that […]\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ghanamma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ghanamma\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\",\"@id\":\"\"},\"headline\":\"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-06-13T16:48:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":545,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ghanamma.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Business\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/\",\"name\":\"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019 - Ghanamma.com\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ghanamma.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-06-13T16:48:22+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/13\\\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ghanamma.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ghanamma.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/\",\"name\":\"Ghanamma.com\",\"description\":\"News In Ghana - Latest Ghana News Headlines\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ghanamma.com\\\/2017\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019 - Ghanamma.com","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019 - Ghanamma.com","twitter_description":"US student Otto Warmbier has been freed from jail in North Korea, but his parents say he has been in a coma for a year. The US secretary of state said the 22-year-old was on his way home to the US. The Warmbier family told US media they had found out only last week that […]","twitter_image":"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg","twitter_creator":"@ghanamma","twitter_site":"@ghanamma","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/"},"author":{"name":"","@id":""},"headline":"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019","datePublished":"2017-06-13T16:48:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/"},"wordCount":545,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg","articleSection":["Business"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/","url":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/","name":"North Korea releases jailed US student \u2018in coma\u2019 - Ghanamma.com","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg","datePublished":"2017-06-13T16:48:22+00:00","author":{"@id":""},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/06\/13\/north-korea-releases-jailed-us-student-in-coma\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/","name":"Ghanamma.com","description":"News In Ghana - Latest Ghana News Headlines","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=395539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395539\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=395539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=395539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=395539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![](\"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/88791749_4dffa9a8-39e7-4251-bfad-a4d6e6efd9bb.jpg\")
<\/p>\n