RETURNED

Father of Student Detained in North Korea Doubts Coma Explanation

Fred Warmbier emphasizes President Trump’s role in returning his son.

The father of the American student who was imprisoned in North Korea for 15 months said he does not believe the Hermit Kingdom’s explanation for his son’s coma. Otto Warmbier, 22, remains unconscious in an Ohio hospital, a day after returning from Pyongyang, which alleges he took sleeping pills and had a bout of botulism—U.S. doctors say he has suffered severe neurological damage. Fred Warmbier highlighted President Trump’s role in returning his son—he emphasized the differences between the previous administration’s failed approach to returning Otto, in contrast with the current White House’s “tough” approach. He said in a press conference Thursday that his son was lured to North Korea and taken hostage at the airport while trying to leave the country. When asked what he would say to North Korea, Fred Warmbier said, “What would you say to the North Koreans? I’m so proud of Otto, my son, who has been in a pariah regime for the past 15 months and he’s now home.”