Former North Korean Prisoner Dies, Trump Offers ‘Deepest Condolences’

President Donald Trump offered “deepest condolences” Monday to the family of a college student who died shortly after returning home from North Korea, where he had been imprisoned for supposedly removing a poster from a wall.

Otto Warmbier, a student at the University of Virginia, was arrested and convicted by the North Korean regime in March 2016 for “hostile acts.” Warmbier was allowed to return to the United States last week after falling into a coma, 18 months after his imprisonment. Six days later, the Warmbier family announced he had died.

Melania and I offer our deepest condolences to the family of Otto Warmbier on his untimely passing. There is nothing more tragic for a parent than to lose a child in the prime of life. Our thoughts and prayers are with Otto’s family and friends, and all who loved him. Otto’s fate deepens my Administration’s determination to prevent such tragedies from befalling innocent people at the hands of regimes that do not respect the rule of law or basic human decency. The United States once again condemns the brutality of the North Korean regime as we mourn its latest victim.

Shortly before the White House released the statement, Trump said before a group of Silicon Valley business leaders of Warmbier: “At least he got home to his parents” and that North Korea is a “brutal regime” and “we’ll be able to handle it.”

The White House has not responded on whether or not the United States will take more action against the Kim regime.

Related Content