22-year-old US student released from North Korean prison dies

A 22 year old man from the US has died after being released from prison in North Korea.

Otto Warmbier, a student from Cincinnati, Ohio, had been held as a prisoner for 17 months before being released in a coma last week, reports Reuters. His family confirmed late last night that he had died at hospital in Cincinnati, claiming he died as a result of abuse while in prison. "Unfortunately, the awful torturous mistreatment our son received at the hands of the North Koreans ensured that no other outcome was possible beyond the sad one we experienced today," the family said in a statement. Doctors at the University of Cincinnati Medical Centre said that while Warmbier had been breathing on his own, he was severely brain damaged and showed no awareness of his surroundings and made no "purposeful movements or behaviours". He was arrested as a tourist to North Korea in January of last year for trying to steal an item bearing a propaganda slogan, according to the country's media.