Otto Warmbier (Dec. 12, 1994 - June 19,2017) Rest In Peace

A young American man, Otto Warmbier, decides to travel to China at the end of 2015. An adventurous young man who had a desire to explore the world. While in China he saw a China-based tour operator, Young Pioneer Tours, which advertised the trip as safe for all U.S. citizens to North Korea. Being the adventurous soul Otto was he thought he would be just as safe there as he was in China especially since he would be with a tour group.

Otto met in Beijing with a British sales manager, Danny Gratton, and the two boarded a flight to Pyongyang together and struck up a friendship. During their trip they were roommates and stuck together from the time they got to Pyongyang until Otto was arrested.

This trip was to be just a five day New Year’s tour of the country organized by the tour group, Young Pioneer Tours. Otto was not alone on this tour as there were ten other United States citizens with him but it was here where Otto’s trip turned into a nightmare for him and his family. While staying at the Yanggakdo International Hotel in Pyongyang, it was alleged Otto stole a propaganda sign from a staff-only floor of the hotel. A poster that said “Let’s arm ourselves strongly with Kim Jong-il’s patriotism!” In North Korea the government considers harming items with the name or image of their crazy North Korean leader as a serious crime.

While Otto was about to board a plan to head home, on January 2, 2016, he was arrested trying to leave the country under a fabricated story about the theft of a poster. It wasn’t until March 18, 2016 that the state-run Korean Central News Agency released a video claiming the person who was seen removing said poster was Otto Warmbier. The video was no longer than 18 seconds and was low-resolution, grainy so the figure in the video who did “supposedly” remove the poster from wall was unrecognizable however, the image of the poster that followed the low resolution image of the person who took the poster down, was a higher resolution but the persons face removing the poster could not be seen in this clip. Convenient to say the least.   

Otto’s traveling companion and newly found friend, Danny Gratton, witnessed the arrest. He said, “No words were spoken. Two guards just came over to Otto and simply tapped him on the shoulder and let him away. I just said kind of quite nervously, ‘Well, that’s the last we’ll see of you.’ There’s treat irony in those words. That was it. That was the last physical time I saw Otto, ever. Otto didn’t resist. He didn’t look scared. He sort of half-smiled.” The rest of the group was allowed to leave the country without incident but Otto was described as committing “a hostile act against the state” by the North Korean news agency KCNA.

Things move quickly in North Korea because Otto was tried and convicted of theft of the propaganda poster using the CCTV footage, supposedly fingerprint evidence, and a witness testimony then he was paraded into a press conference on February 29, 2016 in order to repeat his confession that he stole the said banner in order to bring it back to the United States. The claim was he stole it to for the mother of a friend of his who wanted it as a souvenir to hang on the wall of a church. This so called church was supposedly in his hometown of Wyoming, Ohio and he was to be paid in the form of a used car valued at $ 10,000 if he was to return or $ 200,000 would be paid to his mother in the form of a charitable donation if he did not return. Otto claimed at the press conference he accepted the offer because his family was suffering from severe financial difficulties.

The statement Otto read at his trial said:

“I never should have allowed myself to be lured by the United States administration to commit a crime in this country. I wish the United States administration never manipulated people like myself in the future to commit crimes against foreign countries. I entirely beg you, the people and government of the DPR Korea, for your forgiveness. Please! I have made the worst mistake of my life! Please! Think of my family.”

There is no doubt in my mind this confession was coerced and the story about the car and money fabricated. Otto never had a chance against such and evil regime. He was used to the way things are done in the United States and his parents were busy trying to get help for their son so they could get him out of North Korea and home. He had hope that he wouldn’t be there long but that changed on March 16, 2016. Just two hours after U.S. envoy Bill Richardson met with two North Korean diplomats from the United Nations office asking for Otto’s release, he was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for supposedly stealing a poster. Mark Toner, the U.S. Department spokesman said it was clear North Korea used the arrest of an American citizens for political purposes despite their claims to the contrary.

In March 2016 just a month after Otto’s trial no one was allowed to see him. It was said he suffered from Botulism and was very ill but his condition was not told to anyone outside of North Korea. His parents were unable to contact him, no communication since March of 2016. The Swedish envoys who represent the United States in North Korea were not allowed to visit with Otto so no one had any contact with him, no one knew what he was going through or what North Korea had done to him.

This family was suffering, their son was being used as a political pawn and yet they couldn’t get the Obama administration to do anything to get their son home. The family was told to keep a low profile and allow the administration to do whatever they can to get their son home but that didn’t happen. They were advised it was important to not upset the North Koreans so they did what they thought was best for their son and listened to the so called experts.

January of 2016 this young man left for an adventure, excited, innocent and secure in the fact he was an American citizens. No one can for a second, guess what was going through Otto’s mind as he was coerced into reading that confession but we can believe he thought his government would do all they could to get him released and home safe. When Mr. Warmbier was asked if he thought the Obama administration should have been doing more for his son’s release his only comment was “I think the results speak for themselves,” and so do I. I might add at no time during this ordeal and the Presidency of Obama did the Warmbier’s get to meet the President face to face and express their fears and concerns for their son’s safe return to the United States.

Mr. Warmbier offered praise for the Trump administration for its work bring their son home. United States Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson worked for the release of Otto at the direction of President Donald Trump and on June 12, 2017, eighteen months after his arrest, Otto was released and sent home to be with his family. His medical condition was far worse than anyone could have anticipated.

After being home for three days the doctors were able to tell the family that Otto suffered extensive brain damage that had nothing to do with botulism. Otto was in a state of unresponsive wakefulness, in other words, a persistent vegetative state. He was breathing on his own, his could blink his eyes but did not respond to his environment yet his father said his facial expression relaxed more after about twenty four hours at home as if he knew. The MRI revealed he suffered from extensive loss of brain tissue throughout his brain typical of a cardiac arrest which caused the brain to be denied oxygen. 

Doctors are not sure what caused Otto to go into cardiac arrest but it could have been triggered by a respiratory arrest.

Otto Warmbier passed away on June 19, 2017, only 22 years old, in the hospital at 2:20 pm. He was surrounded by his loving family and friends. A young man who only wanted to experience life, see new things, help others, who had a bright future filled with hope, taken from his family too soon. As President Trump said yesterday, “There is nothing more tragic for a parent than to lose a child in the prime of life.” My heart goes out to Otto’s family and friends.

Although Otto came into our lives because of this tragedy it is not how we should remember him. When we think of Otto we will never forget all he was put through during his time in North Korea but we also will never forget the loving and caring words of his father. We will not forget the young college student who had so much hope and desire to learn and experience life. The young man who had so much faith and trust in the world and those around him. He has been described as having a loving and caring heart. This is what we should be remembering of Otto and we should all be thankful he made it home to say goodbye to his parents in his own way. As his father said “he could feel his son’s spirit.” I honestly believe he could and Otto could feel his family’s spirits coming around him and giving him support and love.

As I bowed my head in prayer last night I asked the Lord to wrap Otto in his arms and let him know we are all praying for him and how very much he was loved while on this Earth by his family and friends. I thanked God for bringing him home to his family before the Lord took him home so he could finally rest in peace till his family gets to meet him once more. I will keep Otto and his family in my prayers and thoughts.

May God Bless America and May we open our hearts to those in need. Rest in Peace Otto Warmbier