A US student from the University of Virginia has admitted to stealing a propaganda slogan in Pyongyang Hotel in North Korea. Otto Frederick Warmbier claimed that he took the propaganda slogan as per the Friendship United Methodist Church's request. He also said that he was convinced by a secret university society.
Warmbier was taken into custody in January the time he's about to leave North Korea. During Monday's interview with foreign and local journalists, the 21-year-old American student charged for stealing a propaganda slogan said he got the sign at the staff-only area of the Pyongyang Hotel. In a video clip gathered by CNN via Daily Mail, Warmbier revealed that he had made the worst mistake of his life. The American student said that he was asked by a member of the Friendship United Methodist Church to take the slogan with him to the U.S. as his trophy.
"I committed the crime of taking down a political slogan from the staff holding area of the Yanggakdo International Hotel," North Korea's KCNA news agency quoted him as saying as reported by BBC. "The aim of my task was to harm the motivation and work ethic of the Korean people. This was a very foolish aim," he was quoted as saying.
Warmbier confessed that a member of the church offered him a used car worth $10,000 as an exchange for the stolen propaganda sign. KCNA also reported via LFPress that Warmbier's mother would receive $200,000 if he will be caught for stealing the propaganda slogan and if he would be arrested. Back in January, North Korean state media claimed that Warmbier was caught committing a hostile act against the state and that the U.S. government tolerated and manipulated him.
"Since my family is suffering from very severe financial difficulties, I started to consider this as my only golden opportunity to earn money," Warmbier was quoted as saying.
Warmbier visited North Korea in January after joining a five-day New Year's tour with a group of 20 people. The U.S. student's detention came at a rough time when the U.S. is pursuing an international sanction on North Korea on its nuclear tests. KCNA also reported that Warmbier was encouraged by the secretive "Z Society" at the University of Virginia to steal the propaganda slogan after promising him that he would be a member of the group. It is unclear whether Warmbier's statement was voluntary because foreign detainees in North Korea admitted that they were forced to say something against their will.
