Otto Warmbier, the American student held for 17 months by North Korea, has died six days after his release. [Image by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images]"The terrible torturous mistreatment our son received at the hands of North Koreans ensured that no other outcome was possible beyond the sad one we experience today". The 22-year-old University of Virginia sophomore honor student went on a five-day trip to #North Korea as a healthy man.
Upon his arrival in the US, Warmbier was taken immediately to the University of Cincinnati Medical Centre, where doctors said that two M.R.I. scans sent by the North Koreans indicated that he had sustained a catastrophic brain injury shortly after his conviction.
The North claimed Warmbier fell into a coma soon after he was sentenced a year ago.
President Trump called North Korea a "brutal regime".
"There had not been any previous detainment in North Korea that has ended with such tragic finality", the company said, adding that Warmbier's death had made it "reconsider" its position on accepting American tourists.
He arrived in OH on June 13 after being held for more than 17 months. They say that, in fact, he had a respiratory event or was deprived of oxygen for some time and possibly through an overdose of medication.
It jars so strikingly with the fates of most past detained Americans that outside observers are left struggling not only with the mystery of what killed Warmbier but also with what his death means for attempts by Washington and its allies to stop North Korea's pursuit of a nuclear-tipped ICBM that can target the US mainland. He had been in a coma since March 2016. He and others freed from North Korea have said they were coached and coerced into giving confessions. "He looked very uncomfortable - nearly anguished", they said. North Korea accuses the United States and South Korea of sending spies to overthrow its government.
They added: "He was home and we believe he could sense that".
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Doctors who examined Otto Warmbier after his release said there was no sign of botulism in his system.
South Korea on Tuesday said it will make every effort for the quick return of both its detainees and the USA citizens being held in North Korea.
Medical tests carried out in the United States dispute North Korea's claim that he had contracted botulism but the cause of his brain injury remain unclear.
According to his family, Warmbier was unable to speak or react to their voices after he returned home, but the family discerned that his anguished face had become more peaceful because he had realised he was home. But we choose to focus on the time we were given to be with this remarkable person. Three Americans still are being held in North Korea.
It's not clear how long he had been in a coma or what triggered it, though doctors said they did not find signs of physical trauma.
"He was generous, outgoing, sweet, smart as a whip; just an overall good guy", said Danica White, Warmbier's high school English teacher.
The Warmbier family statement added that upon his return from North Korea last week, Otto looked "very uncomfortable - nearly anguished".
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