North Korean Supreme Court sentences US citizen to 15 years hard labour
May 2, AP – Bae, known in North Korea as Pae Jun-Ho, was sentenced to 15 years of “compulsory labor,” KCNA reported Thursday, for “hostile acts” against the North.
North Korea has sentenced a US citizen to 15 years of hard labor, the nation’s state news agency has reported. Kenneth Bae had been accused of committing “crimes against the state.”
The state news agency said the Supreme Court trial took place on Tuesday, but offered no further details.
Bae was reportedly arrested in November as he entered the northeastern port city of Rason, although Pyongyang has not elaborated further on the nature of his crimes,
Announcing his trial on Saturday, KCNA said he had “admitted that he committed crimes aimed to topple the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea].”
Friends of Bae have described him as a devout Christian and a tour operator.
The sentencing further complicates fraught relations between the United States and North Korea following weeks of escalating rhetoric in the wake of Pyongyang’s banned nuclear test.
Associated press writer for human rights observers – contributed to this report.
Category: International
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