Americans and South Koreans especially, they’re jumping at the gun to have people from our countries arrested for the tiniest technicality for propaganda.
I get it. North Korea is horrifyingly fascinating. It wouldn’t be a relaxing vacation and you’d have to ignore heaps danger warnings and ethical concerns, but it would be an unforgettable experience.
Ill be honest. i would love to go there where people dont know what's inside of it. it's one of my desires to go, but it's actually hard to go there and really expensive (if you are american you need to have special vacation permit and should be not blonde hair blue eyes )
Moral of the story: take the advice on travel advisories. The advisories are posted to protect you, but also to let you know that you're on your own if you get in trouble. Don't expect countries to go to war to save you.
Amen. I lived in El Paso in 2011 as a Minor Leaguer. My hillside residence had the perfect view of a Juarez residential hillside. 😳🤯 Fast forward. After a late game, I take the wrong exit and find myself at the Juarez border. Agent- “Wrong turn?” Me- “Yeah, I didn’t have kidnapping or murder in my post game plans…” Agent _(smiling)_ - “Yeah, you’re a bit too white for me to let you cross😅. Just go up there and turn around. Have a safe night!” Even I had my passport out and ready for 🇲🇽, that agent was not letting a 23 yr old white dude cross that line. The #1 Most Dangeorus place to visit outside an active war zone at the time. Yet, Americans still visited… and 1 in 4 were killed.
Well ok but do your own research too. American websites call Turkiye a very dangerous place to travel. But Turkiye is filled with European tourists who know its not true. Just because we are located in the Middle East they call us dangerous without any research
@@Youremyboyblue_ like getting assaulted and abused for possibly going to the wrong floor and simply ( maybe) taking a picture or video they didn't want you to take. People can be terrible from anywhere, but any communist country with all the propaganda shoved down their throats would abuse an American kid and try to keep the abuse quiet cause they need to pretend everything is working well.
@ they did have some proof. I don’t think it’s ever been argued about wether he did or didn’t do it.. he did do it BUT the possible sentence he was facing which ultimately became whatever they used on him
@@stumpedIIya! People ran away from the country and here we have they take tourist trip. Should always know the law and policy of the place you travel to. U.S citizen can only go so far.
@@stumpedII One of the girls on the trip has stated that they weren’t even in the hotel when the alleged incident happened. The video is so blurry you can’t even tell if it’s him.
I remember watching a North Korean defector once talk about the moment they landed in the USA. All the flight staff and the people that came to meet him off the aircraft couldn't stop welcoming him and telling him how glad they were to see him. He thought, 'these are my life long sworn enemies?!?!'
@tdowling2562okay so should amber heard try her court case in north korea girl? do u think they’d even give her a court case in north korea for that? you are tripping. 3rd wave liberal feminism is ruining feminism lol
It brings chills down my spine every time I think about the restrictions this place has put on its people. If you aren’t rich in North Korea, you are basically left to die.
that's literally not true...you literally just made that up. go watch my brothers and sisters in north korea.. yes the situation is not good because of SANCTIONS, they must sell things as "made in china" to bypass sanctions. no one is "left to die". if you aren't rich in the west, you are also left to die. you think your country is better?
I went to high school with Otto back in Ohio. He was a few years older than me but our school was really small so you knew everyone a few grades older and younger than you. It was absolutely devastating to our small community. It was one of those “I remember where I was when” things. I remember specifically when I learned that Otto was coming home. We had all of these ribbons on trees like “bring him home” type ribbons for a long time while he was in captivity so it was always on the forefront of our minds but this was a specific moment I remember. I was at lifeguarding at the community pool and we were all excited at first and we were talking about how he was going to probably write a book and be super famous. Now keep in mind, this is all before it hit the news, this was like the rumor mill within the community. But then later in the day we learned that he was in a coma. We were all in such disbelief. Like we all knew his family, they either live down the street from them, parents are friends, friends with his siblings, were in his classes or did clubs with him, like we all knew him, even if we weren’t close. I was his best friends’ successor as president of the Spanish club. Like, this gives you an idea of how small and interconnected the community is. But yeah, it took a while for us to really grasp that he wasn’t going to wake up. Then all sorts of government officials and diplomats were visiting our small suburban community for the funeral and meet with the family, it was so weird. The funeral took place at our high school which was a double layer of sad because it reminded us of how young he was since that was the last place most of us actually saw him or at least interacted with him in person. Anyone else who has ever been to the funeral of a young person their age probably knows how extra sad and strange it is even if you’re not close to them. I really appreciate that you gave him a real story rather than giving into the whole “stupid reckless college kid who is arrogant enough to think that he can get away with anything” nonsense. I couldn’t get all the way through the video because tbh it’s just kind of too close to home and it’s upsetting to me but from everything I heard I really appreciate your compassion. No one at all who knew him at all believed for one second that he did anything wrong. I really think it was an unfortunate opportunity DPRK took to grab an American and make an example of him. Like he was not at all like that. Even in high school when every guy was an arrogant ass. People who think they know everything just go off and say horrible things about him where he “deserved it” but it’s so important to remember that he was a REAL person and his family has to deal with this every day for the rest of their lives. And they for sure see comments. If I feel angry and hurt over seeing these comments as someone who knows his family but was not close to him by any means, I cannot fathom how his family and close friends feel. I went to South Korea for vacation last month and actually visited the DMZ and it was a really weird experience for me to look straight at North Korea after everything that happened and I couldn’t help but to spend time there remembering Otto. Sorry for my long thing, I’m just glad I found this video because this is refreshingly compassionate compared to many other defamatory videos unfairly judging him. Also note: the whole bit about the “Methodist church” that’s literally where I went to preschool and it’s just bonkers that a random church was brought into this especially since he’s Jewish. You make SO many good points I wish more people paid attention to before saying horrible things about him where his loved ones can see them. Just thanks 💜
This is heartbreaking! At the time I recall many cruel comments online about this. The reality is, no matter what he supposedly did, he did not deserve what happened to him. We all make mistakes but we don't all pay for them with torture and death. My heart goes out to his family. Otto must have been terrified. RIP young man. Thank you for telling the story with compassion.
@@aidaHabiba-j7k jesus Christ dude ....the guy was literally tortured for a stupid ass thing a lot of young people could have done because they are nave and wan something to tell back home. He did not harm anyone. Nobody deserve torture for something stupid like this nobody deserves torture point blank... so "ugh americans suck anyways so self cebtered whatever" maybe mayyyybe is literally not the point but you do you. (Before you said that i'm not american)
1:14:02 I actually believe the obama administration would say this. It was under his administration that China invaded the west Philippine sea and supposedly, under the MUTUAL DEFENSE TREATY, THE US SHOULD'VE HELPED AND SENT AID TO THE PHILIPPINES. BUT THEY DIDN'T. The only thing that makes obama popular is his skin color. He was the most spinless and play safe president with no honor. That's why then President Duterte almost severed PH alliance with the US and when it was Trump's turn where he was courting PH back, PH can no longer do anything because China had already built a base on the country and we can only try be be friendlier with them instead. He was also the one who ended wet and dry foot policy that made it harder for immigrants, her was also the one who built those cages but he was never criticised for this since media loves him. The Philippines has been bombed and torn and a lot of Filipino blood has been shed due to our alliance with us. But Play safe and coward and no honor Obama acted dead when we needed help the most. Trump is annoying as a person, but at least you know what he's really thinking. Also, he gets criticized for all the good and bad things he's done. That was never the case of Obama and that's dangerous for a president. Who is he, a dictator? TF
ADDED CONTEXT: This video sadly didn’t talk about the North Korean prisons nor their system of “three generations of punishment”. The prisons are actual concentration camps called “Kwan-li so” and at the very least half a million people are detained there. In the camps, there are two “zones”, made for two kinds of prisoners. The first is the “partial control zone”, where the prisoners are interned for a kind of limited period of time (always multiple years) and they follow the same model of the Chinese laogai of “reeducation through labor”, which means tons of propaganda and brutal, backbreaking forced labor. Then once they end their imprisonment, they are freed and can try to live the shitty life that awaits all North Koreans. But then there is the “total control zone”. Now, many don’t know that North Korea has what it calls “three generations of punishment”. This is a legal notion that mandates that the next two generations HAVE TO BE PUNISHED together with the person that committed the political crime. This means that if let’s say your uncle is arrested for political crimes, it’s not just him which will go to the prison camp for life, but ALL FAMILY MEMBERS for THREE GENERATIONS, in order to (ostensibly) “root out the criminal gene”. Your uncle, your aunt, your cousins, your father, your mother, you, your siblings, your cousin’s siblings, and even your kids, and that usually will be FOR LIFE. If someone who’s young is arrested directly and doesn’t have kids, that person will (if they work hard enough) be paired with a prisoner of the opposite sex by the guards EXACTLY as you would pair two farm animals, without having any choice in the matter, and put together in the same hut with the expectancy that you two will have sex and a pregnancy will result. After the woman gets pregnant, the couple will be separated, and the baby will be raised as a prisoner from day one. He will never know that a world exist outside the prison camp. He will not know what words like “family”, “nation”, “sea”, “sport”, or “love” mean, and will live his entire life as a prisoner, without even the concept of living as a prisoner in a prison camp, thinking that the entire world is built like that concentration camp and that all of reality is exactly like that living hell… and if he gets paired with another prisoner to have kids, those kids will live the same exact life, and only their kids will be sent to an orphanage and finally be able to know what “freedom” is. All of this is, in my opinion, the worst, most inhumane action that any nation does nowadays, without any equal for brutality. It’s total savagery, a complete mockery of the very concept of humanity, and for this sole reason North Korea deserves to see her end really, really fast.
@@gabrieladavila3278 there are a few like when the doctor arrived in north korea he was taken to a remote cabin. and not immediately to the hospital . there's a 42 minute documentary with interviews from the people she is talking about . watch that and see how she manipulates things ,.
It’s a huge warning to people who travel abroad. Other countries have different laws, cultures, beliefs, idealism then the US. Don’t go to hostile countries. I was heartbroken for Otto and his family. It’s disgusting what happened to him.
@@brianonnela8186 He was arrested for stealing a propaganda poster. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and he came out, I think 1 year later, in a coma then died
I mean, it's kinda expected to happen. You come to N.Korea, you play by their rules. If they tell you to not do anything stupid, then don't do anything stupid.
@@meow-rt3qx true but what exactly happened? not every place on earth an American could just walk and do anything they'd like, that's ignorance. if you're a guest in a foreign country would you act like you own that country? torturing him was harsh, but the US obviously saw that punishment coming. the US and NK are enemies after all
For a restricted floor that doesn’t even exist, surely it would be locked and have restricted access. My guy was able to just get in that easy? That’s sus asf.
Also im sure if they have them on watch otto wouldve been caught way before getting anywhere near the other elevator also a mexican volgger said their was a staircase that tourist were not allowed to use so maybe those
They ma well Want Anyone foolish enough to even TRY the door... to Do So! Evil is Entrapping , Easy to get into, Hard ,to impossible to extricate from. Few remember this.
I don't think he even left the room. I think he might have mentioned trying to find that floor as a joke to his room mate and since the room was bugged.....they decided to pounce just because they can.
Not to mention all the times, we’ve seen her cry over the heartbreaking things that happened to these victims. I’ve never seen anyone talk about true crime, and cry like that and honestly, it makes me feel human again. It’s a reminder that these aren’t just stories, this is real life.
Back when this was all over the news, it was said that the subject in the cctv footage wasn’t even Otto. Either way, I cannot for the life of me understand why ANYONE would willingly go to North Korea 😔ESPECIALLY if you’re an American!
American entitlement is the only thing I can think of. A majority of Americans think they can do anything anywhere because they're so accustomed to American freedom
I remember when this happened, ALL I heard about this case was blaming the victim. I didn't even know that the evidence of him vandalizing stuff in NK couldn't even clearly identify him. There was so much I learned in this video that I didn't know based on media reporting at the time.
Might be slightly off topic but it's interesting how people respond to high-profile deaths differently. JFK Jr (38 years old): All pilots I've spoken with claim it was his own very avoidable mistakes, hubris, and lack of experience that took his life and those of his wife and sister-in-law. Public reaction: National tragedy. "Death of an American Prince". Otto Warmbier (22 years old): Allegedly vandalizes a poster in NK. Forced confession. Returned to the U.S. in a vegetative state. Dies. Public reaction: F--- around and find out. A University of Delaware professor wrote Warmbier "got exactly what he deserved".
@@dante6985 Well you can't exactly blame anyone but Otto himself. Travel agencies warned him, his parents warned him, probably everyone he knew warned him, but he still went into that hellhole of a country. It doesn't even matter that you're doing exactly how they tell you. In NK, you can end up in Otto's situation even if you unironically love and praise their regime. I think that the fact that he was an American was enough to get him tortured and killed.
^^ this!!! i didnt know or see this about the footage either, whether he did it or not he and his family didn't deserve the cruel torture and his death.. RIP
I love how stephanie creates an emotional connection for the listeners like it's not that she's telling a story bit she's going in depth and creating a whole scene
110%!! Shes the absolute BEST storyteller ive ever heard. I simply adore her... for bringing light to these people in such a respectful way and creating this community full of love. Shes made me cry and shes made me laugh my butt off so many times since finding her a year ago- i feel like shes part of my weekly life. Nothing but appreciation and love for this woman ❤
We'll never know what truly happened. However it was obviously something really traumatic. A young and healthy 22 year old doesn't just fall into a coma for a year and then die within a week of getting home. Something sinister took place no doubt.
They wanted to use him for a bargaining chip. There was something international that was happening soon after this incident. When they realized he wasn't a chip, they killed him. I hate the whole Kim family. They need to all be removed (I know this will get hate, but even the children) maybe not killed but exiled. They could be put in jail at the supermax prison where terrorists are, or maybe guantanamo. But even the children have been groomed to be the next generation of evil and horror and need to be removed.
As a nurse who has taken care of people in a vegetative state, teeth do rearrange themselves when not in use (talking, chewing, etc) and limbs do get contractures when not in use for long periods- appearing deformed.
You are the first person I've heard mention this phenomenon and I feel like it explains away one of the big "mysteries" surrounding what happened to Otto. It really seems like he tried to kill himself after the sentencing and his captors only got to him 20 minutes or so after he stopped breathing. They were able to revive him, but unable to keep him from being a vegetable. All the mysterious deformities were likely the result of a year of being in a vegetative state.
@@KingCrabSuitedThat's an awful big coincidence. He just happens to look tortured after being held prisoner in North Korea, which has a history of torturing Americans. A year isn't that long and neither of you have done a side-by-side comparison between him and a known victim of torture.🙄
Thank you! I posted a question on whether those could have been caused by stress and/or being in a coma for so long literally seconds before reading your comment! 😅 I mean they are still guilty for everything that happened to Otto, even in the case if he inflicted the harm on himself, I just don't believe in blaming anyone for things that they haven't done. I believe it's important to be honest about his state
I highly doubt he even tried to take that poster in the first place they were just looking for something to frame him as a political pawn. Hearing him read that obviously written for him speech sounding so dejected and defeated is just awful. Like do North Korea really think that speech was believable? It’s laughably ridiculous
There's a guy I spoke with on Reddit that claimed to go to the same church as Otto. He said there's another member who is relatively wealthy and known to be a collector of things. He offered to buy Otto a used car if he can bring back a poster for him.
Wait! Otto's parents refused an autopsy on Otto's body? That's crazy! if you ask me. How could you NOT want to know what exactly killed your son? Yet, they go sue North Korea for half a billion dollars? You'd think they'd want to know every detail possible of what was done to their son during his horrific detention in that country. That just doesn't sound right to me.
That’s what I was thinking. Honestly I think the country should’ve been able to do one regardless of the families wishes as it seems to be an international crime case.
Steph made a great point. North Korea is notorious for having CCTV everywhere and yet they only had this footage of "Otto"? I bet there was CCTV footage of Otto's room available, but because he was sleeping all night and never left his room, they destroyed that footage.
One of the girls on the trip has stated that they weren’t even in the hotel when the alleged incident happened. The video is so blurry you can’t even tell if it’s him.
Exactly. Why would you willingly give NK your tourist dollars? It's so naive. Just not a good idea all-round. For people wanting to go out of curiosity, perhaps consider if your curiosity is worth financially supporting a dictatorship. Not to mention they use these tours to push their propaganda onto the tourists, who then go on to tell people it's not as bad as people make it out to be. It is tragic what happened to this man, I'm not downplaying that, just for anyone else considering doing one of these tours-- perhaps reconsider 😅
@@AstronautCity 1) He was basically a kid. If we could get kids or even ADULTS to care about the consequences of our blind consumerism, the world would be so much different. Really we're all guilty of apathy and supporting terrible regimes by spending out of convenience. 2) He got arrested for stealing a poster, so clearly his goal was to do more than just be a tourist taking selfies and vlogging in the kooky dictator nation. Misguided, yes, but a far cry in spirit from what Hawaiian tourists are doing now.
Sadly, that could literally be said about visiting any country. Of course the government is getting a higher-than-average share of the profits in NK, but tourism feeds the machine wherever you go. Travel is a double-edged sword. It gives you insight you could never otherwise get, but you are always giving your money to whatever dictatorship is in charge.
I remember watching this unfold in real time. What struck me as crazy was reading the comments and how many people actually believed the whole Methodist Church and CIA excuse. And Honestly the whole televised apology that was shown to the world felt more like a humiliation tactic than anything else.
That is crazy and sad that people believed that. I think the last 10 years the conspiracy theorists have gotten worse and a lot more of them. There’s a conspiracy for everything 😂
Obviously the CIA excuse should reveal to any half-intelligent human that it’s fake, but imo that church thing only adds to the fakeness of that crazy confession! Otto was Jewish and active in his university’s hillel. May his memory be a blessing
Please please please. If you go to foreign countries, study up on the laws. Especially if you are going to somewhere that is a dictator state. Not on the same scale, but look at the young woman who just got arrested in Dubai for arguing 😢
Or better yet don't go to those places. Some people go to places and every one knows what not to do but entitlement make people think it is a joke and still do it.
The woman in Dubai didn't just argue; she cussed a man out. The U.A.E is a Muslim country where PDA isn’t even allowed. Cursing in public is illegal there. Too many Westerners go to Dubai and simply see it as a glamorous modern city in the middle of the desert. They fail to realize that it is a city that adheres to strict Islamic values and dislikes arrogant Westerners who bring their Western attitudes with them.
@@schmetterlingxox3096 ... i mean, it's hardly a "western attitude" to cuss at men. i live in asia & asian old ladies specifically are the worst offenders of LOUDLY cussing out everyone & anyone for really mundane things. it's not something i've personally experienced elsewhere on this scale.
The law did not justify the punishment even according to N. Korean law. He was tortured and ultimately killed. There is no law in N. Korea that states death if you rip up a poster. N. Korea is corrupt just like every nation only they are a proud dictatorship! How could he possibly forsee this? He was a young man who was born and raised in the most free society in the world. He probably did not comprehend how dangerous N. Korean is. What he did was immature, but his death is not his fault. He was murdered by a horrible dictatorship.
I lived in China for 8 years and have stood on the border of NK. What a difference just over the border, even though NK tries to keep people from seeing the poverty in the country by trying to keep the borders clean. One thing I learned living in China and traveling all over Asia is to abide by the laws of the land or suffer the consequences. I’m not saying the consequences are just but you must realize that you aren’t in the USA anymore
@@valvihk3649this is not an American thing that’s ignorant of you to even say that. Anyone that’s traveling to any country needs to abide by the countries law& rules it’s only common sense. Nothing to do with one group of people.
@@captivatedlunt1895No, it's not. Lol. United States has a bad rep and there are reasons for it (not just the people, but the government too). You might want to expose yourself if you didn't know. America is also not "a group of people." The main commentator is correct, if you are no longer in the United States, you are not protected by the same laws or by your personal opinions on freedom.
I am Mexican. I remember an American girl being asked what her plans were for spring break and she said she was going to Mexico, that a little stupid cartel wasn't going to ruin her vacation. I was appalled to say the least by her answer. All the while in my state people were turning up mutilated, a friend of mine wa shot in the head in Acapulco, I love my country but it's very unsafe.
No matter what anyone did, they don’t deserve to be fucking tortured like that. Literally he had nobody in that cell. They could’ve done unspeakable things to him. Things that will never come to light. Imagine all the regret he must’ve felt. Wishing he could go back and undo everything. He was only 22 and he didn’t deserve this. His family didn’t deserve this.
Think the percentage of people who think he deserved this is minute. I think the most popular thought is “fuck around and find out”. Except he didn’t need to “find out”. It’s well publicised what happens if you fuck around in North Korea. Even going there doesn’t come with a guarantee that you’ll come home. That’s why people feel he got himself into this situation.
There’s a book called “Escape from camp 14” the story of Shin Dong-hyuk. It details the kind of torture and life experienced in North Korea and it’s a really really horrific existence.
Imagine if he didn’t even take the poster. If he didn’t wander off all alone to a forbidden floor at all and was with other tour group members in his room. Everyone agrees the confession looked scripted, fake, forced etc… if he was innocent and the government manufactured this to spoon feed the citizens more hate and thirst for retribution against Americans, then he’s even more undeserving and this is more terrifying. So many people are so sure “he fucked around and found out” but maybe all he’s guilty of is going there. Why would the officers say “he had a headache and we took him to the hospital” instead of saying he was suspected of a crime or “we can’t give any information”. They purposely wanted to pacify the friend who was leaving. That, to me, says at that point all they knew was they were going to try some shit but hadn’t fully cooked the story until the next day.
It obviously wasn’t him and NK chose a random person to use as a scapegoat for their political agenda. Those on the trip say he wasn’t even there in the hotel at the time. The video doesn’t even look like him, plus the movements of the person look so unnatural, definitely was a NK government worker. Plus with cameras everywhere in that country, they definitely had footage of him else where when this happened but probably destroyed that footage. I bet every inch of that hotel was monitored and they could have followed Otto around, but we never saw that. This whole case is sickening. RIP Otto. We know he didn’t do this.
I agree, i think the person taking down the poster was ordered to do so by the higher ups, that’s why his movement is so odd, cause being a north korean he’s trying to be as respectful to the poster as humanly possible, since to them it’s a relic of sorts
There's a guy I spoke with on Reddit that claimed to go to the same church as Otto. He said there's another member who is relatively wealthy and known to be a collector of things. He offered to buy Otto a used car if he can bring back a poster for him.
I totally agree that Otto was innocent. It was a forced confession in such bad English the poor American wasn't even allowed to correct it himself. Also they said a presybeterian church member asked him mto bring a poster home. Otto was Jewish with no connections to a Presbyterian church....
The more I learnt of this case, the more I'm convinced he couldn't withstand the mental torture and tried to end it all. The officers found him still alive but very badly injured and couldn't do anything to bring him back. Awful. Whether he took the poster or not he didn't deserve to suffer any of this.
@@vivi-ws9yl You do realise they're laughing at how absurd the comment is, not at a dude's death? Low IQ moment on your part but I'll forgive it this time
This is how I lean as well. Unfortunately, hanging is a pretty common method in prison because it's quite easy to pull off with normal things you'd have in the cell. Second most likely in my mind is that they fucked up waterboarding him, but that's a pretty distant second because you would have to be just...really fucking bad at it to not notice that someone was completely unable to breathe for 4+ minutes. Presumably the guy sent to torture an American is not the guy who it's his first day on the job.
At Ottos "confession" it looked very forced and the fact the poor guy is brain dead so he cant eveb talk about his experience even if he could imagine how hard that would be all my prayers go to him and his family.
What surprises me the most it is his lack of self preservation. Why do you want to go to risky places that even those countries citizens are afraid of to do anything against them.
Because he was young and foolish. You couldn't pay me to go to a dangerous country. And if I went, I would be on my nest behavior, not sneaking around and causing problems.
*best behavior. It's definitely a very troubling story. Foolish or not, Otto didn't deserve that ending- it's terrible what the N Korean government did to him.
People are like "well why would you take a poster" while it COULD NOT BE MORE OBVIOUS that he did no such fucking thing lmao. He was asleep in his bed the entire time. The only crime he committed was being without witnesses to speak up for him for two hours. Like, it wouldn't even shock me if he was served a drink with something in it -- not enough to really injure him, just enough to make him feel shitty enough that he'd go to bed while everyone else went out.
I just saw an interview with the people he traveled with and he was with them at another location dancing in the New Year. So he even did have an alibi.
That makes sense. They hated him from the second he stepped foot on their soil. Likely watching and plodding the whole time. You brought up a valuable point. Now I really wonder if he wasn't left alone. Would he have gotten out of NK without incident? I highly doubt he did anything that he was accused of. I can't imagine why anyone would want to visit. Sad this kid became a political pawn.
It's so damn sad. I can't even imagine how his family and friends must be feeling. I can only imagine the amount of hopelessness, sadness, and anger they must have felt, and are still feeling. I hope everyone involved will eventually be able to find peace.
When he was released and shortly passed away my heart was burdened. I prayed for Otto for months when I heard of what happened. I hope he is resting now in paradise. 💔
I don’t usually get to personal on here. I will say as a mom to a son that serves his country with honor, as a sister who watches her older sister and brother in law serve their country with honor and as a supporter of our military, this disgusting me on a personal level!
I’d never consider going to a country I was warned not to go to. I’m so sorry for Otto and God bless his family. I pray they find a peace that surpasses all understanding! They will be in my prayers!
North Korea is already scary enough without all the over exaggeration that actually makes many people, specially some communists and people who (with reason, in my country, Brazil, for instance, resent the US, say that EVERYTHNG said about North Korea is just American propaganda. Because it sure feels like. Yeah, you can take pics and film whatever you want. You ALREADY are in pre approved areas, for Christ sake! Why they would bother anyway? If anything it's the opposite! They WANT YOU to film everything and go back and post it in English or in whatever is your native language! That's WHY those tours even EXIST in the first place! It's the capital. It's beautiful! It's all prepared to make it look normal and okay. And you, folks, FALL for their trap! And Yeah, the kids are probably just being kids. Kids are kids. They live in the richest part of the city, the capital, not in the villages. And they know no other life other than that. To them it looks just fine! Nothing justify the end this guy had. But he committed TWO crimes: trespassing and theft. Johnny Somali just FINALLY was jailed in JAPAN for just trespassing. And he did much worse before but it was the actual crime they were waiting to put him in jail in Japan. So, of course he was jailed in freaking NORTH KOREA. He would be even in JAPAN. All those exaggerations about North Korea just HELP the North Korean regime. Because people start to think that ANYTHING about there is just "capitalist propaganda". And they have some reason to start doubting. Because it's just TOO MUCH at a certain point. you think you are working against them but you are in fact HELPING them. a LOT!!
I watched the entire video and after learning the details I believe Otto was being tortured from the beginning, severely enough for him to fear for his life and confess under duress and begging for people to save his life. Help didn't come soon enough for him and he died and North Korean government wouldn't let people see him because of the condition he was in. He was brain dead from early on
Do u mean mentally or that he was waterboarded or something? Cause all accounts of his physical health don't really support brutal physical torture and neither does the current preccedent.
Probably torture who went wrong - was accidentally suffocated which left him brain-dead, and as soon as they realized that he was dying he was let go to die at home.
When she said he had no bed sores, all I could think was he was hanging the whole time… she said that they were known for hanging people by the armpits so I believe it
@@deborahbastian6180 that would leave severe marks to have your weight suspended by ropes. Also it would have cut the circulation to the areas, it would actually be more impressive to keep someone in good physically condition while suspended.
This story has haunted me for years. Every time I thought of how broken and crying he was, I myself would break down in tears. I have a son and if this happened to him, I would want the guilty parties to suffer for years before death. It’s too upsetting to even watch this entire video.😢
@@mk4883Oh I understand, it's all justified! The North Koreans kept him all that time out of concern for his own good and well being. Such is the benevolence of our Dear Leader! Yea, sure.
To be fr the only truly guilty part is him. It is not easy to get into North Korea for a reason. 99% of countries have travel advisories against North Korea for a reason. North Korea technically did not break any laws. They went but the laws and punishments they have in place. As messed up as it is he did this to himself
My heart hurts for Otto and his family. What a horrific thing to happen during what was supposed to be a means to learn. However…. Given even a cursory amount of information on N. Korea, idk why anyone would willingly go there.
Some people want to see sadness because they don't know it. They wanna see the truth, which is that everyone in North Korea is suffering from mismanaged country and grinding labor.
I think people severely underestimate just how controlled n. korea is, and just how brainwashed the typical citizen is. I've watched a lot of interviews from defectors and it's truly a dystopian nightmare in many ways.
@@Louise-ls4jvmany of them lied about their situation.. one lady talked about eating bugs and dead people everywhere but news got out that she was actually one of the higher 40-50+ districts… lied for fame.. you can Google multiple ones.. it requires a higher status for the opportunity to defect
I don't think Otto really did anything wrong. I personally wouldn't go to NK but he was just curious and wanted something never seen before. Its really hard to not get it. also, watch the last few seconds of the video.
@@fincallistafayehhe obviously did this wrong, so he lost his life. Curiosity is not a reason to go do something dangerous that everyone told you not to. This time he paid with his life.
Well....tbh too many white men think the world is their oyster and think they can do everything and anything. Why do you think most extreme sports are done by white men? Even white Latinos are not prone to engaging in dangerous sports (gang members are a whole new conversation).
I thought I knew everything about this case but I continue to be blown away by your story-telling and the hard work of all of the researchers that help construct the story and case. Thank you for allowing us to have a deep insight into Otto’s case.
Hearing him speak, and say things that very obviously he doesn’t believe, things that aren’t true, that he is forced to say is so heartbreaking, the chance he didn’t even go into the restricted area at all… Feel so bad for this poor man
And for those who have never been in the hands or even Around Sadists, where your responses are only for their Pleasure and Change Nothing, affect them only to get them off! is nearly impossible to countenance as a neophyte ! impossible to even imagine Thus his begging... to No one for No effect.
If your not used to seeing people who have spent a long time in an immobile state, like a coma, their condition could seem bizarre. Arms and legs can become strangely bent, eyes can rot, faces can look a little distorted...I've even seen fingers black and rotting and exposed back bones from bed sores. This is with care and it happens gradually with time. So if you haven't slowly gotten used to the changes it can be very jarring. I havent seen this in a long, long time though. It was more common when I first became a nurse years ago. Still this is a very sad story.
This would fit with the family's announcements, especially considering medical care is said to be lacking behind in North Korea even for the elite. If Otto had been unconscious for a year and this was more common back in the day, his family might not have been prepared for how such a state would look... All of this is terrible, whether torture had been physical or not. I remember when this situation first broke, then got resolved without answers or any happy ending...
Teeth can move as well, yeah. I've heard of that after a Guillain-Barré episode that lasted for around a month before recovering mobility, can't imagine what may happen after a whole year.
Them telling the rest of the tour group “Otto is sick and been taken to hospital” immediately after they had him detained. And later telling the guide the same thing, well similar to same. Why not say Otto is being detained and won’t be making the flight. Then tell the guide the same. It’s just so odd to say he’s sick being taken to hospital. And to say headache when he would later have brain damage…. But later he is seen at “court” begging for “forgiveness” so we know he wasn’t brain dead yet. What were they doing to him???? My god. So scary
One of the most haunting details of this story is that his mother reportedly heard animal like sounds when he was coming off the plane and it then to discover it was her son. It’s just unthinkable what his family must have felt to see their beautiful child so broken before his death like that. It would almost have been better if they never got to welcome him home and he’d just died before meeting them.
The USA should of evaporated all of them and then they could never do that to anyone ever again!!! Then Trump comes along , he's my good friend , I love Rocket boy , stupid jerk .
But he did call of sick...and the Korean people are not known for their height...she said that the guy in the picture looked so tall, as if he was a monster. Americans get pretty tall and that student was Hella tall. It wasn't some random Korean. It looks like him.
I never considered whether or not he actually took the poster prior to this. (it’s such a ridiculous ‘crime,’ on the surface that you don’t think to probe deeper) but you’re so right. There would likely be more/clearer footage, and IF they had better footage, surely they would air it, to strengthen their accusations?
no fr. I’m rather certain he didn’t try to take it. Besides, as we saw via his harsh sentence, it seems like they rly wanted to make a scapegoat out of someone.
To add to this, surely there are cameras on every floor, and if such, wouldn’t they catch Otto leaving and entering his room around the time that he supposedly stole the poster?
Honestly I speculate that NK planned to do this well before Otto even set foot in the country. They wanted to make an example of an American to their own people. This was probably more about controlling their people rather than starting a conflict with America. Otto just unfortunately won the worst lottery imaginable. He was the epitome of what NK imagines Americans to look like. (Honestly to the people playing the whole "white male privilege" card... they probably weren't that far off from the truth.... only it's that exact "privilege" that got Otto selected to be the target.) Poor Otto, may he rest in peace.
That CCTV footage could very well be fake/fabricated! They were not able to show that footage to the rest of the tour members right when they detained Otto in the airport. For all we know, they spy on the rooms and realized this American kid is left alone for 2 hrs w/ no other foreigners from other countries that could dispute what we will say. Simply, they just want to make a statement to the world, get back at US, or gain some bargaining collateral, and saw the opportunity in this naive kid. That CCTV footage could have been filmed during the 3 weeks' silence after they detained and tortured Otto and just set the date to that 2hr window. As you have said, there is no video of Otto coming out of his room, was that even what Otto wore during that night? How was he able to sneak into that floor. I really despise everyone who was victim-blaming Otto when it the news initially came out yrs ago as if they know exactly what happened that night and they were there or were sure NK is saying the truth! Bah, if NK was able to force Otto to confess to being part of a church he doesn't belong to or being a spy of the CIA in front of the press, what else do you think have they forced the kid to do in private. The CIA would be so dumb to send a college kid to slaughter just to put down a freaking generic propaganda portrait that is not necessarily new to people.
It’s a possibility that he was sneaking around or something and the north korean government was trying to figure out if he was a spy. That immediately answers the question as to why he was possibly tortured. That’s the hypothesis that makes the most sense for me. I just want to preface that it’s no excuse for torturing the kid but it explains the chain of events.
Just a side note. Waterboarding has been a widely adopted practice since the Spanish and Italian Inquisitions (late 1400s/early 1500s). The only reason people think it is a more recently developed technique is because the term "waterboarding" wasn't coined until the late 1970s. It has gone by many names, Tormenta de Toca, the water cure, water torture, but the method remains the same.
This case breaks my heart. Here the patents thought they were getting their son back. But instead he was brain dead and on life support. Then his parents had to make the decision to cut him off. They tortured his parents too.
I feel like if Otto actually took down the poster, he would've panicked when the airport officer approached him. He wouldn't have laughed at his friend's joke. And if he had panicked even a little, his friend would've definitely shared that detail. But all he shared is that he laughed at his jokes meaning that he didn't suspect anything.
Listening again to Otto's confession, something dawns on me -- how can someone understand the severity of a crime without also having an idea of the penalties associated with it? R.I.P.
@@redfo3009 given my question was/is rhetorical, please allow me to clarify. I was/am remarking on the structure and wording of Otto's confession, specifically 45:02 .* While many presumed the confession to be coerced - myself included - I previously overlooked the contradictory nature of, "I understand the severity of my crime and I have no idea what sort of penalty I may face."
It’s crazy that it took the U.S banning citizens from traveling to North Korea for people to understand there’s nothing over there worth experiencing when you’re one wrong move from certain death
Another possibility for his coma is that they use brain altering drugs in their "interrogations" and he reacted horribly to them. This would fit with their mental torture tactics and wouldn't leave visible physical marks. His bad reaction to the drugs could have put him in a coma and then they tried to take really good care of him to bring him back and after a year realized they had really screwed up and needed to come up with a lame excuse to what they did.
Close. Very close,,- add in the hit to the head, a traumatic brain injury. Then they thought he was faking it so they cut out his nails but he was internally dead . There was no response. These people are sick fucks. Then they abused him & took pictures & waited to see if he’d come back but he didn’t . They threw him in a cell for dead, but then the US demanding him back caused them to try & bring him back, he was lifeless so they hit him with the paddles & gave him meds to jump start his heart . Results? He’s brain dead. No need to do an otopsy . He was dead, body burned bitten bruised & battered …he had swelling on his brain. They did it. That Fucking gross ass country. If this was my son, you couldn’t keep me from figuring out how to hurt them, then doing it. I’d spend my whole life screwing with them. Just yuk.
Even with an autopsy they couldn't prove water boarding. The water wouldn't still be in his lungs a year later and even if there was fluid it would be difficult to say this fluid is from water boarding verses fluid build up from being on a vent for over a year. Also there are lots of ways to kill someone without a mark when they've had a year to heal. Cutting off circulation to the neck is easily done without breaking bones. It's nearly impossible to figure out a cause of death without blood results and toxicology from the time of the incident.
Otto was tortured with Electrocution (he had burn scar wounds on his foot). Otto was brain damaged because of lack of oxygen, meaning they most likely suffocated him as well.
@@12yearssoberthink of the likelihood though - they aren’t stupid and knew he was a suicidal risk at the start of torture. I highly doubt he had access to the tools / materials needed to try to hang himself.
@@nero48not just clothes. Any kind of cloth / bed sheet / towel. Don’t forget anything remotely sharp or a mirror / window that could be broken. It’s not just clothes I’m talking about. Let’s expand our critical thinking skills beyond that of a kindergartner. 😉
A mother in North Korea was sentenced to death because during a house fire she chooses to save her son and let the picture of their leader (every house MUST have one) burn, this is a true story.
@@mk4883true or not, you can’t exactly defend the abuse north korea inflicts on its citizens. that’s not a myth. there is a reason nk tries to hide what’s going on in there from the rest of the world
@@mk4883 I'm not sure what sounds more as an "atrocity propaganda" the story about the mother and the burning house or a tourist, who got imprisoned there, and returned to his country years later with the permanent brain damage as a vegetable.
Your stories are biblically long! But perfectly delivered! I especially like your co-host chiming in from time to time without being over intuitive . It never diverts from your focus of the story. Perfectly well executed. You have just won yourself a new subscriber
I heard about this a couple years ago and I was absolutely shocked by what they did to that young kid it just comes to show that everything is not perfect in the world. Some countries are not the same, especially North Korea. The fact that a young kid who was just going on a field trip would end up so tragic and sad
@@sabirahemphill-garcia1676you have to be ignorant to think you can go on a 'field trip' in NK, and not assuming u are at risk of dying and or loosing everything.
I've heard about this. North Korea has become the most secluded and impossible to flee from in the last 2-3 years. The number of people able to flee in those years has dropped to two digits. I think 2021 it's been about 70 recorded cases.
They not only punish the immediate family of someone who escapes but they punish 3 generations of the family. Many people are scared to leave for this reason. Also you have to go to China to escape North Korea and they will return you to North Korea.
I'm sure after covid, their population dropped a ton. Dead slaves = tougher time for their glorious leader. Gotta keep whoever is left there to make use of what's left.
Thank you for covering this in depth because I ignorantly thought it was like a situation where he went to a really strict country and did stupid shit…I don’t think he did.
Yesterday I watched a bunch of videos about people who got stuck in caves while caving…. Somehow I get the same unsettling feeling while listening to this story; same thoughts: why would anyone go to a place where you never know how narrow of a tunnel you are getting into… what if you won’t be able to wiggle your way out of it?…. Literally same uncomfortable feelings 😢😢
This story is so hard for me. He came back so broken, he went through hell, her was tortured..... This case destroyed me when he came back, what his family went through. Thank you for doing this story with such care. ❤
He went there to learn and ended up teaching us more than he could ever have known. I hope this knowledge is somehow used for good so people can be free and happy. Thank you for helping us learn about this Mango and teaching and sharing so much about other cultures and politics. My heart is with you and all the production that went into this and all affected by Otto's treatment. So much love to Otto's family.
I think their punishment is cruel, and mentally childish. They could have just made him hang the poster back up, pay a fine, publicly apologize, and ban him from coming back. Torture for this and lying to their own people is crazy too.
But it should be that simple. A poster should not equal losing their life. They could have set an example. After that conference where he begged, fine him, ban him, send him home. It would have made them look a lot better not further soured poor relations.
Don't know what was written on it..but they don't want you to take something down..which is disrespectful for them. For you and everybody it seems ridiculous but not in that crazy Country. You are not allowed to be disrespectful to the Leader...else you would be k* by the Gouvernment. Even a Woman whose House Was burning..she couldn't save K Yong Un s Picture. Don't know what happend to her. Something bad i guess. What if it was an other Tourist putting that Poster down?
@aliciagbeach they did set an example just not the peaceful friendly one you hope for. For them, this was an opportunity to prove a point against the US. They're not interested in being friends.
This is North Korea a long standing enemy of America !do you really think they will tolarate anything that they think an American has done ?no way !North Korean soldier who defected to South Korea said he knew that Otto was silenced by MK ultra drugs(nuclear)he was not involved but he knew how his gorvernment will react to this and he feels sorry for Otto and his not even sure why he choose to go there whilst all of them are risking their lives to escape !
Aloha to my favorite married couple! Hope all is well, Maui needs our help please (I live on Oahu, Waikiki). Mahalo for the best stories and updates! Mahalo
I believe that the man in the CCTV is not Otto but just a way to blame Otto as they are already being monitored as Americans once they have entered the country and just planning to get them. And otto staying and sleeping alone in the hotel got them the chance to do it.
Honestly, I agree. The fact that the only evidence NK provided was a single video clip that was a recording of the cctv monitor, not even directly the recording, of an unidentifiable figure is just telling.
A blogger (Wait But Why) has an article about his trip to North Korea. Just Google “Wait but Why Korea” and you’ll pull it up. They don’t let me link here.
As a Cuban I'm reading Korean comments say "I don't understand why you would want to travel to North Korea" I totally share the sentiment I would look twice at anyone wanting to travel to Cuba.
Don’t judge Otto’s parents for not having an autopsy unless you’ve lost a child. I’m almost positive his parents felt as though he had been put through enough and what good would it do? I can understand that way of thinking and feeling as I have lost a child. I didn’t want her cut on and taken apart only to be thrown together again by strangers. That old saying of “Don’t judge someone else until you’ve walked a Mike in their shoes.” You need to go hug your children tight. There are a lot of us who can’t.
Thank you @myralawson4543 for making this statement. I completely agree with you. I don't think people understand how terribly painful it is to know that your loved one will be dismembered to then be put back together. I support the parents for what I can only imagine must have been such a difficult decision. They might have so deeply wanted an autopsy for their own peace of mind but at the cost of further inflecting "pain" to all the horror their son had already gone through. By not doing the autopsy they probably felt it was a better way to honor their son and give his body final peace I dont think people can ever truly understand what one will do until they are in that situation. I just lost my papa a couple months ago and while I so deeply wanted an autopsy to bring me closure I decided his body had gone through enough and I didn't want people cutting more into him as he had had several procedures while he had been alive. Love papa IG-manuelmysuperhero
@trollhunter6934 how are they showing they are not concerned? The dad made it his personal mission to get the president to pay attention to him and do something! Like my previous comment stated people don't understand the emotional toll it takes to consent to your loved one being cut up into. Obviously they know under the watch of NC their son was inflicted immense pressures to have their son returned in the mental capacity he was.
This is a story that lives rent free on my mind. I haven't even watch the video but it still scares me of what the guy had to live through. But at the same time i want to know because he deserves justice, i want to know his story. So here i go, i say a little prayer and start the video...
Why do you want to go to North Korea in the first place? What's there to see really? Why touch something that doesn't belong to you? Why his parents refuse an autopsy? This case is so bizarre
1. Curiosity maybe, it literally sounds like a distopia, I would be intrigued to go there but I know I couldn't hold myself back to say bad things about nk lol 2. You don't know if he touched the picture. Nobody knows. 3. There can be many reasons why someone refuses an autopsy. But yes, it's frustrating when it's such an international case.
F-China, North Korea, and every Muslim country! You don't go to people's house for dinner if they didn't invite you! So why go to other countries who are anti America!
For the first question, the answer is the adrenaline. It’s the same reason why people want to see nuclear catastrophic landmarks, voodoo tribes or shops, sacred rivers that carry the death or even just abandoned places. We are curious by nature, ones are more curious than others.
Props to that tour guide from the Young Pioneers. That's a brave person or someone extremely well-trained to handle an unexpected situation that may arise. If they weren't promoted, someone in some company is overlooking a very dedicated and stellar employee.
That's the first time watching a video from Rotten Mango and I am now a subscriber. She's a flawless story teller and kept me engaged the entire time. Good job.
As someone who has stayed at one of those North Korean hotels for foreigners, I can confirm that there was strands of various wire going from the nightstand into the wall. I probably have a picture of it somewhere. You're very accurate about the details of behaving in North Korea, especially the part where you said that you cannot take a picture with only a part of the body of the leaders and you cannot fold a picture of the leaders. It is strictly prohibited and they were looking for signs of that on the way out during exit customs inspection.
I’ve heard of this case a while ago, through Lazy Masquerade specifically, and to this day this is one of the only cases that gives me a cold tingle on my spine. I feel so bad for his family, and thinking of what he must be feeling must have been agonizing for him. I hope he’s at a better place now.
My jaw was on the floor when i was watching him confess in the court about trying to steal a fking piece of paper.. im sorry this is making me almost gag with all the anxiety im feeling….
I had the same chilling feeling listening to him beg for his life in court. This is not a drama on tv, it's a real human being in true desperation and it's so hard to listen to it. Regardless of the circumstances, nobody deserves what happened to Otto and I hope he's resting peacefully now.
Same, I also originally heard this from Lazy Masquerade (great horror/thriller/crime RUclipsr) The fact that this kind of thing can happen is just terrifying, my heart goes out to Otto and his family. I truly do not even believe it was him in that video. The build does not look the same at all. There's also no way that was the only video footage they could have gotten, I'm sure there was at least one camera in the hall which Otto would have needed to pass by to get to the stairway. And honestly with a smart student like him, if he actually wanted to steal a poster I don't think he would have done such a shitty job of only being able to pick it up and put it on the floor because he couldn't hide it.
Once I saw the notification I clicked the notification as fast I could I love how you talk for literally 1 hour straight on one topic like idk how you do that but you’re a born storyteller
15:34 Cuba is, in fact, actually pretty easy to travel to. I’m not sure if it’s any different now since I travelled in 2020 but all it takes is for you to say you’re traveling to Cuba for learning purposes like “touring for learning their culture” to get a visa. The country is bizarre but incredibly beautiful.
Also the poverty is in no way due to the sanctions but also we can't lift the sanctions...just dont ask questions and believe what your McPropaganda tells you
@@mr.burkenstock4188well just for starters, in 2008 I went there on my Honeymoon (I'm Canadian 🇨🇦) and as soon as you collect your luggage and go up to leave the airport, they have MURALS painted with huge pictures of "political prisoners" that the USA has. 😳 I'm talking HUGE and everywhere! Really bad stuff about the USA! I had never been so relieved to be Canadian after I saw that, yikes! 👀 They also have an identical government building to copy the USA, what else, oh they monitor every single thing you are doing on the internet and you have to buy weird little cards with codes to even access the ancient internet service! You can NEVER talk about the government in a negative light, just don't even speak of them at all. Also due to the USA embargo, they only have classic cars from like the 50's and it's SO weird but also kind of cool. A few other things, but ya, it's an odd place for sure lol
North Korea is SUPERRRR based on discipline, all of the citizens are conditioned from a very young age to follow the “rules” of the country, so most North Koreans would have saw that sign and never thought twice of going in, I guess they thought the same of their guests
Your cadence throughout the entire episode is amazing. I appreciate the time you take to share these cases with us. I love that you respect & explain the nuances of ways of life of other countries and cultures. Great episode as always Stephanie
I was as dumb as you get as a young adult, dealing, drugs, etc. In my polluted and diluted mind even I knew going to North Korea would be one of the dumbest most unsafe things that an American could do
Sadly, many Americans do not take other cultures seriously until it is too late. Recall the young man in Singapore who was caned for his pranking in their country.
I lived in the old Soviet Block before the fall of the regime and my aunt actually went to NK in the 80's, there were no restrictions on us, communist brothers and sisters. To this days she says it's the worst place ever in the world. To those who are skeptical and think all the stories about life in NK sound too crazy and far fetched to be true: Well, they're true.
I thoroughly enjoy how well you tell the stories of these victims, as well as the opposition. You make sure to not step on any toes, and remain respectful. You're awesome!!
This is horrendous. My heart breaks for Otto and his parents. As a mother I can’t imagine the torture of your child going through such evil. Those people involved ( including those who did nothing to save him) will all be held accountable to God. 😞🙏
That security camera footage looks like this to me: They knew how many people were in there and tracked them. How many left and how many were staying. Since the room was bugged, it would have been easy for them to do that. If everyone in the middle were just collateral as Stephanie says and they used Otto- or planned to- they could have easily had someone, with the permission possibly of someone high up to do that exact thing to frame Otto since the video really isn't clear. They framed him for it and forced him to confess.
@@LKing-ue2jl meaning he was framed and dude stealing painting is a North Korean hints why he didn't roll it up. They hate Americans. They didn't like them being loud and abnoxious thinking it was a joke to f with north korean officials. They felt his group were disrespectful and one of em had to go
I don't know if he did it or not, but anyone not at least open to the possibility this could have been a setup done for some perceived political or propaganda advantage is being naive. Honestly, knowing what I know about North Korea, and knowing what I know about how many young people seem clueless and careless, either version of the story is plausible. Regardless, what happened to him is disgraceful.
A family friend as a young woman went to Russia on a tour. This was before the collapse of the USSR. They were convinced their hotel room was bugged. After the maid had cleaned the room, the kids would talk amongst themselves that the maid forgot to leave soap. Then they left the room, and when they came back, there would be soap.
His parents reactions break my heart. They stayed so supportive and hopeful through an insanely high-stress, unrelenting, and tragic situation; having faith in the leniency of the North Korean government based on past cases involving foreighners recieving lenient sentences (which didn't work out), Then having faith in the U.S.'s current administrations negotition efforts (which failed them), Then hearing he's coming home and having faith that the "great American health care system" could heal Otto (which, unfortunately, they couldn't at that point) only to be shocked upon finally seeing their beloved only son in the brutalized condition he was _actually_ returned in (blinded, beaten, unresponsive in a coma, etc.). I can only imagine their pain and the depth of their strength & my heart and prayers go out to them.
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
As a South Korean, I can't wrap my head around why people would want to travel there. You obviously know that everything is controlled and dangerous.
Lol ppl will do anything these to be on RUclips
Americans and South Koreans especially, they’re jumping at the gun to have people from our countries arrested for the tiniest technicality for propaganda.
Because there is no shortage of stupid people in the world.
Its safer than South Korea, for sure.
@@Crazy--Clownwhat does wanting to be on RUclips have to do with this? 😂 what am I missing.
I'll never understand why people would want to vacation in North Korea. This is just sad😔.
You beat me to it. Idk why anyone would wanna go there
I get it. North Korea is horrifyingly fascinating.
It wouldn’t be a relaxing vacation and you’d have to ignore heaps danger warnings and ethical concerns, but it would be an unforgettable experience.
Ill be honest. i would love to go there where people dont know what's inside of it. it's one of my desires to go, but it's actually hard to go there and really expensive (if you are american you need to have special vacation permit and should be not blonde hair blue eyes )
I feel the same way about Florida.
@@albin2232i think that's just a little bit different, don't you think?
Moral of the story: take the advice on travel advisories. The advisories are posted to protect you, but also to let you know that you're on your own if you get in trouble. Don't expect countries to go to war to save you.
Amen. I lived in El Paso in 2011 as a Minor Leaguer. My hillside residence had the perfect view of a Juarez residential hillside. 😳🤯
Fast forward. After a late game, I take the wrong exit and find myself at the Juarez border.
Agent- “Wrong turn?”
Me- “Yeah, I didn’t have kidnapping or murder in my post game plans…”
Agent _(smiling)_ - “Yeah, you’re a bit too white for me to let you cross😅. Just go up there and turn around. Have a safe night!”
Even I had my passport out and ready for 🇲🇽, that agent was not letting a 23 yr old white dude cross that line. The #1 Most Dangeorus place to visit outside an active war zone at the time. Yet, Americans still visited… and 1 in 4 were killed.
Well ok but do your own research too. American websites call Turkiye a very dangerous place to travel. But Turkiye is filled with European tourists who know its not true. Just because we are located in the Middle East they call us dangerous without any research
@@jeffrey.a.hansonlets be real most of those americans that got killed were in the game
@4runner456 exactly!
@@jeffrey.a.hanson some of these travel RUclips "I went to the worst... don't believe media.." videos are so common now it's ridiculous.
They didn't want Otto alive to tell his story. Even if they know that we know, N Korea would rather him dead.
What story?
@Youremyboyblue_ the real details of the story in this video, maybe
@@Youremyboyblue_ like getting assaulted and abused for possibly going to the wrong floor and simply ( maybe) taking a picture or video they didn't want you to take. People can be terrible from anywhere, but any communist country with all the propaganda shoved down their throats would abuse an American kid and try to keep the abuse quiet cause they need to pretend everything is working well.
@@Youremyboyblue_ The fact he was targeted and poisoned since they had no evidence of their accusations on him.
@ they did have some proof. I don’t think it’s ever been argued about wether he did or didn’t do it.. he did do it BUT the possible sentence he was facing which ultimately became whatever they used on him
Seeing the footage of Otto begging for forgiveness just breaks my heart, I can't imagine what he must have felt in those moments.
For real. Poor man
Fucked around, found out.
not me.. he had no business going into a dictatorship.. then disrespecting that dictator.. he asked for it.. he got it.
@@stumpedIIya! People ran away from the country and here we have they take tourist trip. Should always know the law and policy of the place you travel to. U.S citizen can only go so far.
@@stumpedII One of the girls on the trip has stated that they weren’t even in the hotel when the alleged incident happened. The video is so blurry you can’t even tell if it’s him.
I remember watching a North Korean defector once talk about the moment they landed in the USA. All the flight staff and the people that came to meet him off the aircraft couldn't stop welcoming him and telling him how glad they were to see him. He thought, 'these are my life long sworn enemies?!?!'
Funny they don't that with us Latinos, huh? Instead they sent our kids to detention camps.
He is a defector, he literally betrayed the US sworn enemy ...what 's so weird about that? The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
@tdowling2562what r u babblin about this is about countries home dawg
N Korea is a giant prison essentially. I know everywhere has problems but this place makes me proud to be from anywhere else
@tdowling2562okay so should amber heard try her court case in north korea girl? do u think they’d even give her a court case in north korea for that? you are tripping. 3rd wave liberal feminism is ruining feminism lol
It brings chills down my spine every time I think about the restrictions this place has put on its people. If you aren’t rich in North Korea, you are basically left to die.
I bet. With Their crazy laws in 🇰🇵
Only the politically connected are rich. No one can educate themselves and make their life better.
That’s how it is in dictatorships 😞 I was born in a communist dictatorship and people are like animals trying to survive
@@iolitelightExactly
that's literally not true...you literally just made that up. go watch my brothers and sisters in north korea.. yes the situation is not good because of SANCTIONS, they must sell things as "made in china" to bypass sanctions. no one is "left to die". if you aren't rich in the west, you are also left to die. you think your country is better?
I went to high school with Otto back in Ohio. He was a few years older than me but our school was really small so you knew everyone a few grades older and younger than you. It was absolutely devastating to our small community. It was one of those “I remember where I was when” things. I remember specifically when I learned that Otto was coming home. We had all of these ribbons on trees like “bring him home” type ribbons for a long time while he was in captivity so it was always on the forefront of our minds but this was a specific moment I remember. I was at lifeguarding at the community pool and we were all excited at first and we were talking about how he was going to probably write a book and be super famous. Now keep in mind, this is all before it hit the news, this was like the rumor mill within the community. But then later in the day we learned that he was in a coma. We were all in such disbelief. Like we all knew his family, they either live down the street from them, parents are friends, friends with his siblings, were in his classes or did clubs with him, like we all knew him, even if we weren’t close. I was his best friends’ successor as president of the Spanish club. Like, this gives you an idea of how small and interconnected the community is. But yeah, it took a while for us to really grasp that he wasn’t going to wake up. Then all sorts of government officials and diplomats were visiting our small suburban community for the funeral and meet with the family, it was so weird. The funeral took place at our high school which was a double layer of sad because it reminded us of how young he was since that was the last place most of us actually saw him or at least interacted with him in person. Anyone else who has ever been to the funeral of a young person their age probably knows how extra sad and strange it is even if you’re not close to them.
I really appreciate that you gave him a real story rather than giving into the whole “stupid reckless college kid who is arrogant enough to think that he can get away with anything” nonsense. I couldn’t get all the way through the video because tbh it’s just kind of too close to home and it’s upsetting to me but from everything I heard I really appreciate your compassion. No one at all who knew him at all believed for one second that he did anything wrong. I really think it was an unfortunate opportunity DPRK took to grab an American and make an example of him. Like he was not at all like that. Even in high school when every guy was an arrogant ass. People who think they know everything just go off and say horrible things about him where he “deserved it” but it’s so important to remember that he was a REAL person and his family has to deal with this every day for the rest of their lives. And they for sure see comments. If I feel angry and hurt over seeing these comments as someone who knows his family but was not close to him by any means, I cannot fathom how his family and close friends feel. I went to South Korea for vacation last month and actually visited the DMZ and it was a really weird experience for me to look straight at North Korea after everything that happened and I couldn’t help but to spend time there remembering Otto.
Sorry for my long thing, I’m just glad I found this video because this is refreshingly compassionate compared to many other defamatory videos unfairly judging him.
Also note: the whole bit about the “Methodist church” that’s literally where I went to preschool and it’s just bonkers that a random church was brought into this especially since he’s Jewish.
You make SO many good points I wish more people paid attention to before saying horrible things about him where his loved ones can see them.
Just thanks 💜
I'm late to this but he didn't deserve what happened to him and I'm sorry for your community. It's not right or fair and he deserves justice.
Blessings to all. My heart goes out to
Thank you for sharing
This is heartbreaking! At the time I recall many cruel comments online about this. The reality is, no matter what he supposedly did, he did not deserve what happened to him. We all make mistakes but we don't all pay for them with torture and death. My heart goes out to his family. Otto must have been terrified. RIP young man. Thank you for telling the story with compassion.
Well he knows the risks and what will happen to him,he go anyway, just because he is an American he is special
@@aidaHabiba-j7k jesus Christ dude ....the guy was literally tortured for a stupid ass thing a lot of young people could have done because they are nave and wan something to tell back home. He did not harm anyone. Nobody deserve torture for something stupid like this nobody deserves torture point blank... so "ugh americans suck anyways so self cebtered whatever" maybe mayyyybe is literally not the point but you do you. (Before you said that i'm not american)
1:14:02 I actually believe the obama administration would say this. It was under his administration that China invaded the west Philippine sea and supposedly, under the MUTUAL DEFENSE TREATY, THE US SHOULD'VE HELPED AND SENT AID TO THE PHILIPPINES. BUT THEY DIDN'T. The only thing that makes obama popular is his skin color. He was the most spinless and play safe president with no honor. That's why then President Duterte almost severed PH alliance with the US and when it was Trump's turn where he was courting PH back, PH can no longer do anything because China had already built a base on the country and we can only try be be friendlier with them instead. He was also the one who ended wet and dry foot policy that made it harder for immigrants, her was also the one who built those cages but he was never criticised for this since media loves him.
The Philippines has been bombed and torn and a lot of Filipino blood has been shed due to our alliance with us. But Play safe and coward and no honor Obama acted dead when we needed help the most. Trump is annoying as a person, but at least you know what he's really thinking. Also, he gets criticized for all the good and bad things he's done. That was never the case of Obama and that's dangerous for a president. Who is he, a dictator? TF
@@aidaHabiba-j7k The hell does this have to do with him being American? Would've been as sad if he was of any other nationality.
@@aidaHabiba-j7k does being an asshole make you feel good?
ADDED CONTEXT:
This video sadly didn’t talk about the North Korean prisons nor their system of “three generations of punishment”. The prisons are actual concentration camps called “Kwan-li so” and at the very least half a million people are detained there.
In the camps, there are two “zones”, made for two kinds of prisoners. The first is the “partial control zone”, where the prisoners are interned for a kind of limited period of time (always multiple years) and they follow the same model of the Chinese laogai of “reeducation through labor”, which means tons of propaganda and brutal, backbreaking forced labor. Then once they end their imprisonment, they are freed and can try to live the shitty life that awaits all North Koreans.
But then there is the “total control zone”.
Now, many don’t know that North Korea has what it calls “three generations of punishment”.
This is a legal notion that mandates that the next two generations HAVE TO BE PUNISHED together with the person that committed the political crime.
This means that if let’s say your uncle is arrested for political crimes, it’s not just him which will go to the prison camp for life, but ALL FAMILY MEMBERS for THREE GENERATIONS, in order to (ostensibly) “root out the criminal gene”.
Your uncle, your aunt, your cousins, your father, your mother, you, your siblings, your cousin’s siblings, and even your kids, and that usually will be FOR LIFE.
If someone who’s young is arrested directly and doesn’t have kids, that person will (if they work hard enough) be paired with a prisoner of the opposite sex by the guards EXACTLY as you would pair two farm animals, without having any choice in the matter, and put together in the same hut with the expectancy that you two will have sex and a pregnancy will result.
After the woman gets pregnant, the couple will be separated, and the baby will be raised as a prisoner from day one.
He will never know that a world exist outside the prison camp.
He will not know what words like “family”, “nation”, “sea”, “sport”, or “love” mean, and will live his entire life as a prisoner, without even the concept of living as a prisoner in a prison camp, thinking that the entire world is built like that concentration camp and that all of reality is exactly like that living hell… and if he gets paired with another prisoner to have kids, those kids will live the same exact life, and only their kids will be sent to an orphanage and finally be able to know what “freedom” is.
All of this is, in my opinion, the worst, most inhumane action that any nation does nowadays, without any equal for brutality.
It’s total savagery, a complete mockery of the very concept of humanity, and for this sole reason North Korea deserves to see her end really, really fast.
she's also a liar, did you catch that?
@@meanwhilebackonearth7384what do you mean?
@@meanwhilebackonearth7384about what?
@@gabrieladavila3278 there are a few like when the doctor arrived in north korea he was taken to a remote cabin. and not immediately to the hospital . there's a 42 minute documentary with interviews from the people she is talking about . watch that and see how she manipulates things ,.
That's horrific!
It’s a huge warning to people who travel abroad. Other countries have different laws, cultures, beliefs, idealism then the US. Don’t go to hostile countries. I was heartbroken for Otto and his family. It’s disgusting what happened to him.
What happened to him?
@@brianonnela8186that's the whole point of this video. Maybe watch?
@@brianonnela8186 He was arrested for stealing a propaganda poster. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and he came out, I think 1 year later, in a coma then died
@@shinjite06it’s just a trolling comment. Because technically no one really knows what happened to Otto.
@@brianonnela8186 this is what happens when you rush to the comment section to troll without watching a second of the video.
I find stories like this scarier than ghost stories...
That's because ghosts don't exist
I mean, it's kinda expected to happen. You come to N.Korea, you play by their rules. If they tell you to not do anything stupid, then don't do anything stupid.
Humans can be the most terrifying creatures sometimes.
@@bastidotait still doesn’t justify what happened
@@meow-rt3qx true but what exactly happened? not every place on earth an American could just walk and do anything they'd like, that's ignorance. if you're a guest in a foreign country would you act like you own that country? torturing him was harsh, but the US obviously saw that punishment coming. the US and NK are enemies after all
For a restricted floor that doesn’t even exist, surely it would be locked and have restricted access. My guy was able to just get in that easy? That’s sus asf.
Also im sure if they have them on watch otto wouldve been caught way before getting anywhere near the other elevator also a mexican volgger said their was a staircase that tourist were not allowed to use so maybe those
They ma well Want Anyone foolish enough to even TRY the door... to Do So! Evil is Entrapping , Easy to get into, Hard ,to impossible to extricate from. Few remember this.
at the tome they said he pulled a poster fown off the street
They clearly just wanted an American Trophy and made all the charges up.
I don't think he even left the room. I think he might have mentioned trying to find that floor as a joke to his room mate and since the room was bugged.....they decided to pounce just because they can.
I just love the way Stephanie tells peoples stories in such a respectful and intense way 😭😭😭😭
Not to mention all the times, we’ve seen her cry over the heartbreaking things that happened to these victims. I’ve never seen anyone talk about true crime, and cry like that and honestly, it makes me feel human again. It’s a reminder that these aren’t just stories, this is real life.
FR she’s soo good at storytelling as well. She’s realllyyyy good🤩🤩🤩
you didnt even finish the video yet😭😭😭😭
on this channel sure. her other channel? not so much.
can you people show some sensitivity to the victims in the video? praise Stephanie on another video, this just feels inappropriate
Back when this was all over the news, it was said that the subject in the cctv footage wasn’t even Otto.
Either way, I cannot for the life of me understand why ANYONE would willingly go to North Korea 😔ESPECIALLY if you’re an American!
communist beliefs/journalism
American entitlement is the only thing I can think of. A majority of Americans think they can do anything anywhere because they're so accustomed to American freedom
@@Queenofthatank "American freedom" bombed and murdered 20% of the NK population, thats why you're not welcome there
because as a human on earth you should be able to walk and breath everywhere, but you can't, because of humans!
@@QueenofthatankYou say "American Freedom" like that's a bad thing. I'll never understand people who think freedom is bad...
I remember when this happened, ALL I heard about this case was blaming the victim. I didn't even know that the evidence of him vandalizing stuff in NK couldn't even clearly identify him. There was so much I learned in this video that I didn't know based on media reporting at the time.
Might be slightly off topic but it's interesting how people respond to high-profile deaths differently.
JFK Jr (38 years old): All pilots I've spoken with claim it was his own very avoidable mistakes, hubris, and lack of experience that took his life and those of his wife and sister-in-law. Public reaction: National tragedy. "Death of an American Prince".
Otto Warmbier (22 years old): Allegedly vandalizes a poster in NK. Forced confession. Returned to the U.S. in a vegetative state. Dies.
Public reaction: F--- around and find out. A University of Delaware professor wrote Warmbier "got exactly what he deserved".
@@dante6985 Well you can't exactly blame anyone but Otto himself. Travel agencies warned him, his parents warned him, probably everyone he knew warned him, but he still went into that hellhole of a country.
It doesn't even matter that you're doing exactly how they tell you. In NK, you can end up in Otto's situation even if you unironically love and praise their regime.
I think that the fact that he was an American was enough to get him tortured and killed.
^^ this!!! i didnt know or see this about the footage either, whether he did it or not he and his family didn't deserve the cruel torture and his death.. RIP
I love how stephanie creates an emotional connection for the listeners like it's not that she's telling a story bit she's going in depth and creating a whole scene
Wow 35 likes....
She really does. I get so drawn in because of the way she tells the story. There is something so special and engaging about Stephanie. ❤
@@alysonbancroft3476l.
L
L
110%!! Shes the absolute BEST storyteller ive ever heard. I simply adore her... for bringing light to these people in such a respectful way and creating this community full of love. Shes made me cry and shes made me laugh my butt off so many times since finding her a year ago- i feel like shes part of my weekly life. Nothing but appreciation and love for this woman ❤
She is amazing!! I think y’all would like Emma Kenny too. She is great storyteller as well and I love them both!
We'll never know what truly happened. However it was obviously something really traumatic. A young and healthy 22 year old doesn't just fall into a coma for a year and then die within a week of getting home. Something sinister took place no doubt.
Maybe he ate a raw snail…that can do that to you.
(I’m not actually suggesting this is what happened, just that it’s possible)
@@evelynvslifeit is a possibility no one has looked at.
They wanted to use him for a bargaining chip. There was something international that was happening soon after this incident. When they realized he wasn't a chip, they killed him. I hate the whole Kim family. They need to all be removed (I know this will get hate, but even the children) maybe not killed but exiled. They could be put in jail at the supermax prison where terrorists are, or maybe guantanamo. But even the children have been groomed to be the next generation of evil and horror and need to be removed.
Most probably a result of a failed suicide attempt
@vulc1 that's what I was thinking
As a nurse who has taken care of people in a vegetative state, teeth do rearrange themselves when not in use (talking, chewing, etc) and limbs do get contractures when not in use for long periods- appearing deformed.
You are the first person I've heard mention this phenomenon and I feel like it explains away one of the big "mysteries" surrounding what happened to Otto. It really seems like he tried to kill himself after the sentencing and his captors only got to him 20 minutes or so after he stopped breathing. They were able to revive him, but unable to keep him from being a vegetable. All the mysterious deformities were likely the result of a year of being in a vegetative state.
@@KingCrabSuitedThat's an awful big coincidence. He just happens to look tortured after being held prisoner in North Korea, which has a history of torturing Americans. A year isn't that long and neither of you have done a side-by-side comparison between him and a known victim of torture.🙄
After a few weeks?
@@christinebrewer4757 He was in a coma for like a year before repatriated.
Thank you!
I posted a question on whether those could have been caused by stress and/or being in a coma for so long literally seconds before reading your comment! 😅
I mean they are still guilty for everything that happened to Otto, even in the case if he inflicted the harm on himself, I just don't believe in blaming anyone for things that they haven't done.
I believe it's important to be honest about his state
I highly doubt he even tried to take that poster in the first place they were just looking for something to frame him as a political pawn. Hearing him read that obviously written for him speech sounding so dejected and defeated is just awful. Like do North Korea really think that speech was believable? It’s laughably ridiculous
There's a guy I spoke with on Reddit that claimed to go to the same church as Otto. He said there's another member who is relatively wealthy and known to be a collector of things. He offered to buy Otto a used car if he can bring back a poster for him.
@@nhatho1723 a jewish church?
@@coveruplies redditors do lie haha. Could have definitely been the case here. I didn’t realize he is Jewish.
@@nhatho1723freakin commie
I heard something similar kind of like he did it on a dare but have you ever played telephone the message is never the original message @nhatho1723
Wait! Otto's parents refused an autopsy on Otto's body? That's crazy! if you ask me. How could you NOT want to know what exactly killed your son? Yet, they go sue North Korea for half a billion dollars? You'd think they'd want to know every detail possible of what was done to their son during his horrific detention in that country. That just doesn't sound right to me.
That’s what I was thinking. Honestly I think the country should’ve been able to do one regardless of the families wishes as it seems to be an international crime case.
They denied the autopsy cuz nk said send him here we will do autopsy 💀that's what stephanie ..I don't think anybody would send him there
@@Momomimi18 his body was in America. They could’ve done an autopsy there but the family denied it.
@@evelynvslifeNo, they denied that north Korea would be doing the autopsy. They did an autopsy here in America.
I think it was mentioned that they didn't do an autopsy but did a post-mortem instead. But isn't that the same thing?
Steph made a great point. North Korea is notorious for having CCTV everywhere and yet they only had this footage of "Otto"? I bet there was CCTV footage of Otto's room available, but because he was sleeping all night and never left his room, they destroyed that footage.
One of the girls on the trip has stated that they weren’t even in the hotel when the alleged incident happened. The video is so blurry you can’t even tell if it’s him.
It is China that is notorious for having CCTV everywhere not North Korea.
@@vulc1 Both unfortunately
he was a fool
@@vulc1they have the rooms bugged... you really think they don't have cctv all over the place? Please use common sense.
It’s terrifying that they specialize in forms of torture that don’t leave physical marks.
Physical marks are for beginners... ;)
well, they all do. The US, too. As far as i know. Guantánamo is still active. And no one leaves it after entering again ...
@@rodrigobonzanini8235 bro your sick
@@schaetzcken01Plenty of people have been let out of there
@@schaetzcken01Also only terrorists go into Guantanamo
My brother did one of these tours. So crazy. You couldn’t pay me a billion dollars to go there. Poor Otto; this is so terrible.
people who vacation in the DPRK are not only risking their own future, but also directly supporting a deadly regime and ruthless dictator.
Exactly. Why would you willingly give NK your tourist dollars? It's so naive. Just not a good idea all-round. For people wanting to go out of curiosity, perhaps consider if your curiosity is worth financially supporting a dictatorship. Not to mention they use these tours to push their propaganda onto the tourists, who then go on to tell people it's not as bad as people make it out to be. It is tragic what happened to this man, I'm not downplaying that, just for anyone else considering doing one of these tours-- perhaps reconsider 😅
I disagree. More North Koreans will starve to death if there’s no industry to keep their economy going.
@@AstronautCity 1) He was basically a kid. If we could get kids or even ADULTS to care about the consequences of our blind consumerism, the world would be so much different. Really we're all guilty of apathy and supporting terrible regimes by spending out of convenience.
2) He got arrested for stealing a poster, so clearly his goal was to do more than just be a tourist taking selfies and vlogging in the kooky dictator nation. Misguided, yes, but a far cry in spirit from what Hawaiian tourists are doing now.
i didn’t even think abt that
Sadly, that could literally be said about visiting any country. Of course the government is getting a higher-than-average share of the profits in NK, but tourism feeds the machine wherever you go. Travel is a double-edged sword. It gives you insight you could never otherwise get, but you are always giving your money to whatever dictatorship is in charge.
I remember watching this unfold in real time. What struck me as crazy was reading the comments and how many people actually believed the whole Methodist Church and CIA excuse. And Honestly the whole televised apology that was shown to the world felt more like a humiliation tactic than anything else.
People in America are so quick to believe the propaganda or what’s on the media. It’s ridiculous. It was very obviously a script.
That is crazy and sad that people believed that. I think the last 10 years the conspiracy theorists have gotten worse and a lot more of them. There’s a conspiracy for everything 😂
absolutely. intentional degradation.
My stupid self believe it back then. =(
Obviously the CIA excuse should reveal to any half-intelligent human that it’s fake, but imo that church thing only adds to the fakeness of that crazy confession! Otto was Jewish and active in his university’s hillel. May his memory be a blessing
Please please please. If you go to foreign countries, study up on the laws. Especially if you are going to somewhere that is a dictator state. Not on the same scale, but look at the young woman who just got arrested in Dubai for arguing 😢
Or better yet don't go to those places. Some people go to places and every one knows what not to do but entitlement make people think it is a joke and still do it.
The woman in Dubai didn't just argue; she cussed a man out. The U.A.E is a Muslim country where PDA isn’t even allowed. Cursing in public is illegal there. Too many Westerners go to Dubai and simply see it as a glamorous modern city in the middle of the desert. They fail to realize that it is a city that adheres to strict Islamic values and dislikes arrogant Westerners who bring their Western attitudes with them.
@@schmetterlingxox3096Really? That’s so fucked up. Islamic theocracies are trash 🤢.
@@schmetterlingxox3096 ... i mean, it's hardly a "western attitude" to cuss at men. i live in asia & asian old ladies specifically are the worst offenders of LOUDLY cussing out everyone & anyone for really mundane things. it's not something i've personally experienced elsewhere on this scale.
The law did not justify the punishment even according to N. Korean law. He was tortured and ultimately killed. There is no law in N. Korea that states death if you rip up a poster.
N. Korea is corrupt just like every nation only they are a proud dictatorship! How could he possibly forsee this?
He was a young man who was born and raised in the most free society in the world. He probably did not comprehend how dangerous N. Korean is.
What he did was immature, but his death is not his fault. He was murdered by a horrible dictatorship.
I lived in China for 8 years and have stood on the border of NK. What a difference just over the border, even though NK tries to keep people from seeing the poverty in the country by trying to keep the borders clean.
One thing I learned living in China and traveling all over Asia is to abide by the laws of the land or suffer the consequences. I’m not saying the consequences are just but you must realize that you aren’t in the USA anymore
Americans REALLY need to hear this
I’m n American, and I wholeheartedly agree. When you visit a country respect their rules and follow them.
@@valvihk3649this is not an American thing that’s ignorant of you to even say that. Anyone that’s traveling to any country needs to abide by the countries law& rules it’s only common sense. Nothing to do with one group of people.
@@captivatedlunt1895No, it's not. Lol. United States has a bad rep and there are reasons for it (not just the people, but the government too). You might want to expose yourself if you didn't know. America is also not "a group of people." The main commentator is correct, if you are no longer in the United States, you are not protected by the same laws or by your personal opinions on freedom.
I am Mexican. I remember an American girl being asked what her plans were for spring break and she said she was going to Mexico, that a little stupid cartel wasn't going to ruin her vacation. I was appalled to say the least by her answer. All the while in my state people were turning up mutilated, a friend of mine wa shot in the head in Acapulco, I love my country but it's very unsafe.
Man I feel that about the casino I work in lol respect to you! 🙏
Mexico has extremely nice and luxurious areas! Not the entirety of Mexico is unsafe to travel to.
😅😅@@lilo638
. working in casinos are unsafe ?
@@lilo638 such privileges
I think it’s so risky for people to visit a country that has closed its doors to the world knowing that at anytime anything can happen.
And stupid to do.
No matter what anyone did, they don’t deserve to be fucking tortured like that. Literally he had nobody in that cell. They could’ve done unspeakable things to him. Things that will never come to light. Imagine all the regret he must’ve felt. Wishing he could go back and undo everything. He was only 22 and he didn’t deserve this. His family didn’t deserve this.
Think the percentage of people who think he deserved this is minute. I think the most popular thought is “fuck around and find out”. Except he didn’t need to “find out”. It’s well publicised what happens if you fuck around in North Korea. Even going there doesn’t come with a guarantee that you’ll come home. That’s why people feel he got himself into this situation.
There’s a book called “Escape from camp 14” the story of Shin Dong-hyuk. It details the kind of torture and life experienced in North Korea and it’s a really really horrific existence.
Imagine if he didn’t even take the poster. If he didn’t wander off all alone to a forbidden floor at all and was with other tour group members in his room. Everyone agrees the confession looked scripted, fake, forced etc… if he was innocent and the government manufactured this to spoon feed the citizens more hate and thirst for retribution against Americans, then he’s even more undeserving and this is more terrifying. So many people are so sure “he fucked around and found out” but maybe all he’s guilty of is going there. Why would the officers say “he had a headache and we took him to the hospital” instead of saying he was suspected of a crime or “we can’t give any information”. They purposely wanted to pacify the friend who was leaving. That, to me, says at that point all they knew was they were going to try some shit but hadn’t fully cooked the story until the next day.
@@NC4E I totally agree, but personally I consider going to North Korea “fucking around”.
@evelynvslife Being a dumbass doesn't mean he deserved to die though.
It obviously wasn’t him and NK chose a random person to use as a scapegoat for their political agenda. Those on the trip say he wasn’t even there in the hotel at the time. The video doesn’t even look like him, plus the movements of the person look so unnatural, definitely was a NK government worker. Plus with cameras everywhere in that country, they definitely had footage of him else where when this happened but probably destroyed that footage. I bet every inch of that hotel was monitored and they could have followed Otto around, but we never saw that. This whole case is sickening. RIP Otto. We know he didn’t do this.
I agree, i think the person taking down the poster was ordered to do so by the higher ups, that’s why his movement is so odd, cause being a north korean he’s trying to be as respectful to the poster as humanly possible, since to them it’s a relic of sorts
@@sarads7877 that’s a great observation
even if he did it’s ridiculous to do that to someone over a poster. Humans can truly be insane.
There's a guy I spoke with on Reddit that claimed to go to the same church as Otto. He said there's another member who is relatively wealthy and known to be a collector of things. He offered to buy Otto a used car if he can bring back a poster for him.
I totally agree that Otto was innocent. It was a forced confession in such bad English the poor American wasn't even allowed to correct it himself.
Also they said a presybeterian church member asked him mto bring a poster home. Otto was Jewish with no connections to a Presbyterian church....
The more I learnt of this case, the more I'm convinced he couldn't withstand the mental torture and tried to end it all. The officers found him still alive but very badly injured and couldn't do anything to bring him back.
Awful.
Whether he took the poster or not he didn't deserve to suffer any of this.
😂😂😂😂 you think the kid did that to himself?? They beat him to death
He probably tried to hang himself and cut off oxygen to his brain. He was an idiot for going to NK.
@@jumbotron007 Look at you laughing
@@vivi-ws9yl You do realise they're laughing at how absurd the comment is, not at a dude's death? Low IQ moment on your part but I'll forgive it this time
This is how I lean as well. Unfortunately, hanging is a pretty common method in prison because it's quite easy to pull off with normal things you'd have in the cell. Second most likely in my mind is that they fucked up waterboarding him, but that's a pretty distant second because you would have to be just...really fucking bad at it to not notice that someone was completely unable to breathe for 4+ minutes. Presumably the guy sent to torture an American is not the guy who it's his first day on the job.
This woman is probably the best story teller I've ever seen.
I’m still watching but must disagree, she sounds like she’s 17.
I’m pretty sure she’s paid by the word.
Yes She's a really good storyteller. Have you ever watched Mrballen?
So age diminishes your storytelling ability? Could you elaborate on how that would work@@RednailVal
She absolutely IS
At Ottos "confession" it looked very forced and the fact the poor guy is brain dead so he cant eveb talk about his experience even if he could imagine how hard that would be all my prayers go to him and his family.
What surprises me the most it is his lack of self preservation. Why do you want to go to risky places that even those countries citizens are afraid of to do anything against them.
@@timeless9820 many people think he did nothing. Like this footage cant even be called proof
Because he was young and foolish. You couldn't pay me to go to a dangerous country. And if I went, I would be on my nest behavior, not sneaking around and causing problems.
*best behavior. It's definitely a very troubling story. Foolish or not, Otto didn't deserve that ending- it's terrible what the N Korean government did to him.
@@timeless9820sounds like you’re blaming him more than the country that practically tortured him
People are like "well why would you take a poster" while it COULD NOT BE MORE OBVIOUS that he did no such fucking thing lmao. He was asleep in his bed the entire time. The only crime he committed was being without witnesses to speak up for him for two hours. Like, it wouldn't even shock me if he was served a drink with something in it -- not enough to really injure him, just enough to make him feel shitty enough that he'd go to bed while everyone else went out.
PLUS even if he didn’t why would he deserve torture and death ??? it doesn’t add up
I just saw an interview with the people he traveled with and he was with them at another location dancing in the New Year. So he even did have an alibi.
That makes sense. They hated him from the second he stepped foot on their soil. Likely watching and plodding the whole time. You brought up a valuable point. Now I really wonder if he wasn't left alone. Would he have gotten out of NK without incident? I highly doubt he did anything that he was accused of. I can't imagine why anyone would want to visit. Sad this kid became a political pawn.
My thoughts exactly
Love to that tour guide who didn't want to leave Otto behind and stayed in North Korea ALONE to try and get information
It's so damn sad. I can't even imagine how his family and friends must be feeling. I can only imagine the amount of hopelessness, sadness, and anger they must have felt, and are still feeling. I hope everyone involved will eventually be able to find peace.
the fact they probably knew he was jewish and they announced his last meal was pork.
I totally missed that but holy shit
Nobody should be eating pigs, not just Jewish people. Pigs are the most loving and intelligent animals
Oh my lord this is horrendous. The saddest thing is that this is not history, it is still happening to millions of North Koreans
Oh wow i just realized smh they definitely didn’t ask him his dietary restrictions 🥴 the whole methodist part was crazy too
Wait, so what did he eat while on vacation??
When he was released and shortly passed away my heart was burdened. I prayed for Otto for months when I heard of what happened. I hope he is resting now in paradise. 💔
Update: Travis King is back in the USA facing charges for his actions.
He has been dishonorably discharged from the military.
Thank you for your post! I was wondering about him and figured I’d check the comments before rabbit holing google 😂
I would certainly hope so. He committed treason by crossing the DMZ line.
It’s sad, but he disgraced the uniform by acting a fool around town/fighting, zero sympathy
I don’t usually get to personal on here. I will say as a mom to a son that serves his country with honor, as a sister who watches her older sister and brother in law serve their country with honor and as a supporter of our military, this disgusting me on a personal level!
@@huh_9351so you raised war mongers and criminal cops ?
I’d never consider going to a country I was warned not to go to. I’m so sorry for Otto and God bless his family. I pray they find a peace that surpasses all understanding! They will be in my prayers!
North Korea is already scary enough without all the over exaggeration that actually makes many people, specially some communists and people who (with reason, in my country, Brazil, for instance, resent the US, say that EVERYTHNG said about North Korea is just American propaganda. Because it sure feels like. Yeah, you can take pics and film whatever you want. You ALREADY are in pre approved areas, for Christ sake! Why they would bother anyway? If anything it's the opposite! They WANT YOU to film everything and go back and post it in English or in whatever is your native language! That's WHY those tours even EXIST in the first place! It's the capital. It's beautiful! It's all prepared to make it look normal and okay. And you, folks, FALL for their trap! And Yeah, the kids are probably just being kids. Kids are kids. They live in the richest part of the city, the capital, not in the villages. And they know no other life other than that. To them it looks just fine! Nothing justify the end this guy had. But he committed TWO crimes: trespassing and theft. Johnny Somali just FINALLY was jailed in JAPAN for just trespassing. And he did much worse before but it was the actual crime they were waiting to put him in jail in Japan. So, of course he was jailed in freaking NORTH KOREA. He would be even in JAPAN.
All those exaggerations about North Korea just HELP the North Korean regime. Because people start to think that ANYTHING about there is just "capitalist propaganda". And they have some reason to start doubting. Because it's just TOO MUCH at a certain point.
you think you are working against them but you are in fact HELPING them. a LOT!!
Amen 🙏🏿
I find her very biased and follow the "official line" way too often
I watched the entire video and after learning the details I believe Otto was being tortured from the beginning, severely enough for him to fear for his life and confess under duress and begging for people to save his life. Help didn't come soon enough for him and he died and North Korean government wouldn't let people see him because of the condition he was in. He was brain dead from early on
💯 % agree with your comments.
Do u mean mentally or that he was waterboarded or something? Cause all accounts of his physical health don't really support brutal physical torture and neither does the current preccedent.
Probably torture who went wrong - was accidentally suffocated which left him brain-dead, and as soon as they realized that he was dying he was let go to die at home.
When she said he had no bed sores, all I could think was he was hanging the whole time… she said that they were known for hanging people by the armpits so I believe it
@@deborahbastian6180 that would leave severe marks to have your weight suspended by ropes. Also it would have cut the circulation to the areas, it would actually be more impressive to keep someone in good physically condition while suspended.
i will never forget Otto… his story has stayed with me forever. hope he’s resting in peace 🕊️
This story has haunted me for years. Every time I thought of how broken and crying he was, I myself would break down in tears. I have a son and if this happened to him, I would want the guilty parties to suffer for years before death. It’s too upsetting to even watch this entire video.😢
Myself as well. I never forgot this story and how empty and sad it made me feel. I sobbed.
He was a communist fool, and unfortunately, he got the chance to witness North Korean justice.
@@mk4883Oh I understand, it's all justified! The North Koreans kept him all that time out of concern for his own good and well being. Such is the benevolence of our Dear Leader! Yea, sure.
Me too. This story has also haunted me for years.
To be fr the only truly guilty part is him. It is not easy to get into North Korea for a reason. 99% of countries have travel advisories against North Korea for a reason. North Korea technically did not break any laws. They went but the laws and punishments they have in place. As messed up as it is he did this to himself
My heart hurts for Otto and his family. What a horrific thing to happen during what was supposed to be a means to learn. However…. Given even a cursory amount of information on N. Korea, idk why anyone would willingly go there.
If they were Black and in the military, I can see why they would go there.😊
@@RicobacaWhy?
@@RicobacaWhat a silly statement
He shouldn't have stolen
Some people want to see sadness because they don't know it. They wanna see the truth, which is that everyone in North Korea is suffering from mismanaged country and grinding labor.
I think people severely underestimate just how controlled n. korea is, and just how brainwashed the typical citizen is. I've watched a lot of interviews from defectors and it's truly a dystopian nightmare in many ways.
the defectors are usually paid clowns
@@AliA-wy2tfyou have any sources on that claim?
@@Louise-ls4jvmany of them lied about their situation.. one lady talked about eating bugs and dead people everywhere but news got out that she was actually one of the higher 40-50+ districts… lied for fame.. you can Google multiple ones.. it requires a higher status for the opportunity to defect
@@Louise-ls4jv source: he made it up
@@chickennuggiepartygirl9749 yeah probably
why. just why. why would u ever punish yourself like this. going to north korea as itself is just outrageous
I don't think Otto really did anything wrong. I personally wouldn't go to NK but he was just curious and wanted something never seen before. Its really hard to not get it. also, watch the last few seconds of the video.
@@fincallistafayehNo really.
@@fincallistafayehhe obviously did this wrong, so he lost his life. Curiosity is not a reason to go do something dangerous that everyone told you not to. This time he paid with his life.
Well....tbh too many white men think the world is their oyster and think they can do everything and anything. Why do you think most extreme sports are done by white men? Even white Latinos are not prone to engaging in dangerous sports (gang members are a whole new conversation).
She already said not to victim blame
I thought I knew everything about this case but I continue to be blown away by your story-telling and the hard work of all of the researchers that help construct the story and case. Thank you for allowing us to have a deep insight into Otto’s case.
Hearing him speak, and say things that very obviously he doesn’t believe, things that aren’t true, that he is forced to say is so heartbreaking, the chance he didn’t even go into the restricted area at all…
Feel so bad for this poor man
This is exactly what I mean by life's not fair. He's Jewish why would he be in a secret cult..
And for those who have never been in the hands or even Around Sadists, where your responses are only for their Pleasure and Change Nothing, affect them only to get them off! is nearly impossible to countenance as a neophyte ! impossible to even imagine Thus his begging... to No one for No effect.
He honestly looked like he was acting when he was crying and saying it was the worst thing he'd ever done
@@rickyricardo9710to you maybe, he looked terrified to me. And I would have been too.
If your not used to seeing people who have spent a long time in an immobile state, like a coma, their condition could seem bizarre. Arms and legs can become strangely bent, eyes can rot, faces can look a little distorted...I've even seen fingers black and rotting and exposed back bones from bed sores. This is with care and it happens gradually with time. So if you haven't slowly gotten used to the changes it can be very jarring. I havent seen this in a long, long time though. It was more common when I first became a nurse years ago. Still this is a very sad story.
This would fit with the family's announcements, especially considering medical care is said to be lacking behind in North Korea even for the elite. If Otto had been unconscious for a year and this was more common back in the day, his family might not have been prepared for how such a state would look...
All of this is terrible, whether torture had been physical or not. I remember when this situation first broke, then got resolved without answers or any happy ending...
EYES can rot??? How can any body part rot while they're alive? Surely they would die from sepsis not long after?
How did they manage to avoid bed sores for a whole year? That is amazing! Is it even possible?
How is a patient allowed to get to the point where their eyes and extremities are rotting???
Wouldn't they get sepsis?
Teeth can move as well, yeah. I've heard of that after a Guillain-Barré episode that lasted for around a month before recovering mobility, can't imagine what may happen after a whole year.
Them telling the rest of the tour group “Otto is sick and been taken to hospital” immediately after they had him detained. And later telling the guide the same thing, well similar to same. Why not say Otto is being detained and won’t be making the flight. Then tell the guide the same. It’s just so odd to say he’s sick being taken to hospital. And to say headache when he would later have brain damage…. But later he is seen at “court” begging for “forgiveness” so we know he wasn’t brain dead yet. What were they doing to him???? My god. So scary
P.S. I’m only almost half through video so maybe some of what I said will be explained to me but yeah
My heart goes out to the family of Otto and the American soldier. In the end, the games our countries play ultimately fail the common person.
For real 😔 entering very dangerous country 🇰🇵
One of the most haunting details of this story is that his mother reportedly heard animal like sounds when he was coming off the plane and it then to discover it was her son. It’s just unthinkable what his family must have felt to see their beautiful child so broken before his death like that. It would almost have been better if they never got to welcome him home and he’d just died before meeting them.
He didnt die bcuz the ppl who tortured him were sending a message "look what we can do to you"
@@jes6427That’s f’d up😳
The USA should of evaporated all of them and then they could never do that to anyone ever again!!! Then Trump comes along , he's my good friend , I love Rocket boy , stupid jerk .
@@1694cgrntYeah, I remember it and you couldn't make out who was taken that picture off the wall it was so grainy.
But he did call of sick...and the Korean people are not known for their height...she said that the guy in the picture looked so tall, as if he was a monster.
Americans get pretty tall and that student was Hella tall.
It wasn't some random Korean. It looks like him.
I never considered whether or not he actually took the poster prior to this. (it’s such a ridiculous ‘crime,’ on the surface that you don’t think to probe deeper) but you’re so right. There would likely be more/clearer footage, and IF they had better footage, surely they would air it, to strengthen their accusations?
no fr. I’m rather certain he didn’t try to take it. Besides, as we saw via his harsh sentence, it seems like they rly wanted to make a scapegoat out of someone.
To add to this, surely there are cameras on every floor, and if such, wouldn’t they catch Otto leaving and entering his room around the time that he supposedly stole the poster?
Honestly I speculate that NK planned to do this well before Otto even set foot in the country. They wanted to make an example of an American to their own people. This was probably more about controlling their people rather than starting a conflict with America. Otto just unfortunately won the worst lottery imaginable. He was the epitome of what NK imagines Americans to look like. (Honestly to the people playing the whole "white male privilege" card... they probably weren't that far off from the truth.... only it's that exact "privilege" that got Otto selected to be the target.) Poor Otto, may he rest in peace.
That CCTV footage could very well be fake/fabricated! They were not able to show that footage to the rest of the tour members right when they detained Otto in the airport. For all we know, they spy on the rooms and realized this American kid is left alone for 2 hrs w/ no other foreigners from other countries that could dispute what we will say. Simply, they just want to make a statement to the world, get back at US, or gain some bargaining collateral, and saw the opportunity in this naive kid. That CCTV footage could have been filmed during the 3 weeks' silence after they detained and tortured Otto and just set the date to that 2hr window. As you have said, there is no video of Otto coming out of his room, was that even what Otto wore during that night? How was he able to sneak into that floor. I really despise everyone who was victim-blaming Otto when it the news initially came out yrs ago as if they know exactly what happened that night and they were there or were sure NK is saying the truth! Bah, if NK was able to force Otto to confess to being part of a church he doesn't belong to or being a spy of the CIA in front of the press, what else do you think have they forced the kid to do in private. The CIA would be so dumb to send a college kid to slaughter just to put down a freaking generic propaganda portrait that is not necessarily new to people.
It’s a possibility that he was sneaking around or something and the north korean government was trying to figure out if he was a spy. That immediately answers the question as to why he was possibly tortured. That’s the hypothesis that makes the most sense for me. I just want to preface that it’s no excuse for torturing the kid but it explains the chain of events.
Just a side note. Waterboarding has been a widely adopted practice since the Spanish and Italian Inquisitions (late 1400s/early 1500s). The only reason people think it is a more recently developed technique is because the term "waterboarding" wasn't coined until the late 1970s. It has gone by many names, Tormenta de Toca, the water cure, water torture, but the method remains the same.
The classic Water Cure was different. Forced ingestion of shittons of water versus repeatedly flipping the drowning switch.
This case breaks my heart. Here the patents thought they were getting their son back. But instead he was brain dead and on life support. Then his parents had to make the decision to cut him off. They tortured his parents too.
I feel like if Otto actually took down the poster, he would've panicked when the airport officer approached him. He wouldn't have laughed at his friend's joke. And if he had panicked even a little, his friend would've definitely shared that detail. But all he shared is that he laughed at his jokes meaning that he didn't suspect anything.
He was sick .. and went to his room where he was actually sleeping … he was a Patsy !! A Set up ..
that's what I'm saying. A guilty person would've immediately connected the dots in that situation.
That’s a very good point
Listening again to Otto's confession, something dawns on me -- how can someone understand the severity of a crime without also having an idea of the penalties associated with it? R.I.P.
After he was tortured and held in captivity for a while; only then he was able to understand the severity of his actions
@@redfo3009 given my question was/is rhetorical, please allow me to clarify. I was/am remarking on the structure and wording of Otto's confession, specifically 45:02 .*
While many presumed the confession to be coerced - myself included - I previously overlooked the contradictory nature of, "I understand the severity of my crime and I have no idea what sort of penalty I may face."
Yet you accept it when its Gaddafi or Saddam
White Privilege for the win I guess
@@Uncanny_Mountain though I acknowledge you are describing a very real sort of person -- I do not, "accept it when its Gaddafi or Saddam."
@@kneau exactly
White Privilege
It’s crazy that it took the U.S banning citizens from traveling to North Korea for people to understand there’s nothing over there worth experiencing when you’re one wrong move from certain death
Another possibility for his coma is that they use brain altering drugs in their "interrogations" and he reacted horribly to them. This would fit with their mental torture tactics and wouldn't leave visible physical marks. His bad reaction to the drugs could have put him in a coma and then they tried to take really good care of him to bring him back and after a year realized they had really screwed up and needed to come up with a lame excuse to what they did.
Interesting theory!
Like that one old secret American psychological experiment?
@irene6187 huh?? I've never heard of this. Do you have like a video suggestion covering this topic?
Close. Very close,,- add in the hit to the head, a traumatic brain injury. Then they thought he was faking it so they cut out his nails but he was internally dead . There was no response.
These people are sick fucks. Then they abused him & took pictures & waited to see if he’d come back but he didn’t . They threw him in a cell for dead, but then the US demanding him back caused them to try & bring him back, he was lifeless so they hit him with the paddles & gave him meds to jump start his heart . Results? He’s brain dead. No need to do an otopsy . He was dead, body burned bitten bruised & battered …he had swelling on his brain. They did it. That Fucking gross ass country.
If this was my son, you couldn’t keep me from figuring out how to hurt them, then doing it. I’d spend my whole life screwing with them. Just yuk.
@@PoltieBoo
Mk Ultra.
Even with an autopsy they couldn't prove water boarding. The water wouldn't still be in his lungs a year later and even if there was fluid it would be difficult to say this fluid is from water boarding verses fluid build up from being on a vent for over a year.
Also there are lots of ways to kill someone without a mark when they've had a year to heal. Cutting off circulation to the neck is easily done without breaking bones. It's nearly impossible to figure out a cause of death without blood results and toxicology from the time of the incident.
Otto was tortured with Electrocution (he had burn scar wounds on his foot). Otto was brain damaged because of lack of oxygen, meaning they most likely suffocated him as well.
@@Peekaboo-Kitty
Or he attempted to hang himself
@@12yearssoberthink of the likelihood though - they aren’t stupid and knew he was a suicidal risk at the start of torture. I highly doubt he had access to the tools / materials needed to try to hang himself.
@@nero48not just clothes. Any kind of cloth / bed sheet / towel. Don’t forget anything remotely sharp or a mirror / window that could be broken. It’s not just clothes I’m talking about. Let’s expand our critical thinking skills beyond that of a kindergartner. 😉
Nasty insult!
A mother in North Korea was sentenced to death because during a house fire she chooses to save her son and let the picture of their leader (every house MUST have one) burn, this is a true story.
I believe the son went to a juvenile prison as well. Serving til almost 30 I heard. This was a few years ago tho
@@mk4883true or not, you can’t exactly defend the abuse north korea inflicts on its citizens. that’s not a myth. there is a reason nk tries to hide what’s going on in there from the rest of the world
given what we know about north korea, it’s not unreasonable to believe this story
@@mk4883 I'm not sure what sounds more as an "atrocity propaganda" the story about the mother and the burning house or a tourist, who got imprisoned there, and returned to his country years later with the permanent brain damage as a vegetable.
@@mk4883I see North** Korea has joined the chat 🤡
I am so disgusted by ALL current and recent world leaders.
Your stories are biblically long! But perfectly delivered! I especially like your co-host chiming in from time to time without being over intuitive . It never diverts from your focus of the story. Perfectly well executed. You have just won yourself a new subscriber
its even cuter the co host is her bf!!
@@dolltranqhusband
@@maddie_009 OMG REALLY?? CONGRATS TO THEM, THEYRE SO CUTE TOGETHER!!
i think you'd like wendigoon :) he does similar things with equally long videos
I love her videos too I listen to them while at work makes my day fly by!
I heard about this a couple years ago and I was absolutely shocked by what they did to that young kid it just comes to show that everything is not perfect in the world. Some countries are not the same, especially North Korea. The fact that a young kid who was just going on a field trip would end up so tragic and sad
Never was perfect in the world and never will be...didn't need to see this to understand that simple fact.
"Just going on a field trip" lmao
@@purrrrrrrple Well, that’s what it really was a field trip.
@@sabirahemphill-garcia1676yeah to north Korea
@@sabirahemphill-garcia1676you have to be ignorant to think you can go on a 'field trip' in NK, and not assuming u are at risk of dying and or loosing everything.
I've heard about this. North Korea has become the most secluded and impossible to flee from in the last 2-3 years. The number of people able to flee in those years has dropped to two digits. I think 2021 it's been about 70 recorded cases.
They not only punish the immediate family of someone who escapes but they punish 3 generations of the family. Many people are scared to leave for this reason.
Also you have to go to China to escape North Korea and they will return you to North Korea.
I'm sure after covid, their population dropped a ton. Dead slaves = tougher time for their glorious leader. Gotta keep whoever is left there to make use of what's left.
Thank you for covering this in depth because I ignorantly thought it was like a situation where he went to a really strict country and did stupid shit…I don’t think he did.
Ya nathabai
Yesterday I watched a bunch of videos about people who got stuck in caves while caving…. Somehow I get the same unsettling feeling while listening to this story; same thoughts: why would anyone go to a place where you never know how narrow of a tunnel you are getting into… what if you won’t be able to wiggle your way out of it?…. Literally same uncomfortable feelings 😢😢
There is an entire movie/documentary about the Thai cave rescues. It was well done, I suggest watching it if you can find it
Same!!
Yes! It’s the same thing with people who scare of the cliff because they want to jump! I guess some people just don’t have an instinct to stay alive
I believe people do it for the same reason -> the experience … it’s just sad when it doesn’t go as you planned
This story is so hard for me. He came back so broken, he went through hell, her was tortured..... This case destroyed me when he came back, what his family went through. Thank you for doing this story with such care. ❤
he was an idiot
He went there to learn and ended up teaching us more than he could ever have known. I hope this knowledge is somehow used for good so people can be free and happy. Thank you for helping us learn about this Mango and teaching and sharing so much about other cultures and politics. My heart is with you and all the production that went into this and all affected by Otto's treatment. So much love to Otto's family.
Just binging your videos while completing a puzzle. It’s a true mood
this is so real
Otto seems like he would have had a great life ahead of him. What a tragic loss for his family, friends and the world.
The effort Stephanie puts into her videos, telling peoples stories and how respectful she is Unimaginable❤️❤️❤️
I know. I love watching her videos.
Idk, she wont even say North Korea lied about Otto's treatment. Pretty disrespectful if you ask me.
I think their punishment is cruel, and mentally childish. They could have just made him hang the poster back up, pay a fine, publicly apologize, and ban him from coming back. Torture for this and lying to their own people is crazy too.
But it should be that simple. A poster should not equal losing their life. They could have set an example. After that conference where he begged, fine him, ban him, send him home. It would have made them look a lot better not further soured poor relations.
Don't know what was written on it..but they don't want you to take something down..which is disrespectful for them. For you and everybody it seems ridiculous but not in that crazy Country. You are not allowed to be disrespectful to the Leader...else you would be k* by the Gouvernment. Even a Woman whose House Was burning..she couldn't save K Yong Un s Picture. Don't know what happend to her. Something bad i guess. What if it was an other Tourist putting that Poster down?
It's a "lesson" to everybody - North Korean citizens and mostlf foreigners. You see what happens to those who does anything not allowef.
@aliciagbeach they did set an example just not the peaceful friendly one you hope for. For them, this was an opportunity to prove a point against the US. They're not interested in being friends.
This is North Korea a long standing enemy of America !do you really think they will tolarate anything that they think an American has done ?no way !North Korean soldier who defected to South Korea said he knew that Otto was silenced by MK ultra drugs(nuclear)he was not involved but he knew how his gorvernment will react to this and he feels sorry for Otto and his not even sure why he choose to go there whilst all of them are risking their lives to escape !
Aloha to my favorite married couple! Hope all is well, Maui needs our help please (I live on Oahu, Waikiki). Mahalo for the best stories and updates! Mahalo
I believe that the man in the CCTV is not Otto but just a way to blame Otto as they are already being monitored as Americans once they have entered the country and just planning to get them. And otto staying and sleeping alone in the hotel got them the chance to do it.
Honestly, I agree. The fact that the only evidence NK provided was a single video clip that was a recording of the cctv monitor, not even directly the recording, of an unidentifiable figure is just telling.
I think it's him but it's really not the point of contention about this situation
My old history teacher took this EXACT same tour. She refuses to share anything about it. Otto seems like such sweetheart, I feel so sorry for him.
What?? Thats crazy!
Why wouldn’t she talk about it?
@@liabw05 i dont know maybe she felt pressured or unsafe?
A blogger (Wait But Why) has an article about his trip to North Korea. Just Google “Wait but Why Korea” and you’ll pull it up. They don’t let me link here.
Wow that’s creepy!
As a Cuban I'm reading Korean comments say "I don't understand why you would want to travel to North Korea" I totally share the sentiment I would look twice at anyone wanting to travel to Cuba.
Don’t judge Otto’s parents for not having an autopsy unless you’ve lost a child. I’m almost positive his parents felt as though he had been put through enough and what good would it do? I can understand that way of thinking and feeling as I have lost a child. I didn’t want her cut on and taken apart only to be thrown together again by strangers. That old saying of “Don’t judge someone else until you’ve walked a Mike in their shoes.” You need to go hug your children tight. There are a lot of us who can’t.
I agree
I can understand that, but with the circumstances I would want to have answers, even if it doesn't change anything or if I'd rather not know.
Thank you @myralawson4543 for making this statement. I completely agree with you. I don't think people understand how terribly painful it is to know that your loved one will be dismembered to then be put back together. I support the parents for what I can only imagine must have been such a difficult decision. They might have so deeply wanted an autopsy for their own peace of mind but at the cost of further inflecting "pain" to all the horror their son had already gone through. By not doing the autopsy they probably felt it was a better way to honor their son and give his body final peace
I dont think people can ever truly understand what one will do until they are in that situation. I just lost my papa a couple months ago and while I so deeply wanted an autopsy to bring me closure I decided his body had gone through enough and I didn't want people cutting more into him as he had had several procedures while he had been alive. Love papa
IG-manuelmysuperhero
So, your own kid gets murdered in another country and you say , IM NOT CONCERNED about how it happened? 🤔
REALLY?
@trollhunter6934 how are they showing they are not concerned? The dad made it his personal mission to get the president to pay attention to him and do something!
Like my previous comment stated people don't understand the emotional toll it takes to consent to your loved one being cut up into.
Obviously they know under the watch of NC their son was inflicted immense pressures to have their son returned in the mental capacity he was.
This is a story that lives rent free on my mind. I haven't even watch the video but it still scares me of what the guy had to live through. But at the same time i want to know because he deserves justice, i want to know his story. So here i go, i say a little prayer and start the video...
Why do you want to go to North Korea in the first place? What's there to see really? Why touch something that doesn't belong to you? Why his parents refuse an autopsy? This case is so bizarre
1. Curiosity maybe, it literally sounds like a distopia, I would be intrigued to go there but I know I couldn't hold myself back to say bad things about nk lol
2. You don't know if he touched the picture. Nobody knows.
3. There can be many reasons why someone refuses an autopsy. But yes, it's frustrating when it's such an international case.
Agreed
F-China, North Korea, and every Muslim country! You don't go to people's house for dinner if they didn't invite you! So why go to other countries who are anti America!
For the first question, the answer is the adrenaline. It’s the same reason why people want to see nuclear catastrophic landmarks, voodoo tribes or shops, sacred rivers that carry the death or even just abandoned places.
We are curious by nature, ones are more curious than others.
ITS NOT BIZARRE HES AN EXCHANGE STUDENT AND WAS IN CHINA WHEN THEY SOLD HIM A TOUR TO NORTH KOREA..THE REST IS HISTORY..NOTHING BIZARRE
SO MUCH PRAYERS & LOVE TO THAT YOUNG MAN & FAMILY!!!
Props to that tour guide from the Young Pioneers. That's a brave person or someone extremely well-trained to handle an unexpected situation that may arise. If they weren't promoted, someone in some company is overlooking a very dedicated and stellar employee.
I agree. Very very brave and determined
Right. That could've been and possibly was a very dangerous decision to make. He definitely has your 6
That's the first time watching a video from Rotten Mango and I am now a subscriber. She's a flawless story teller and kept me engaged the entire time. Good job.
Flawless? I’d raise your bar.
Flawless? No.
Storyteller? Yes.
As someone who has stayed at one of those North Korean hotels for foreigners, I can confirm that there was strands of various wire going from the nightstand into the wall. I probably have a picture of it somewhere. You're very accurate about the details of behaving in North Korea, especially the part where you said that you cannot take a picture with only a part of the body of the leaders and you cannot fold a picture of the leaders. It is strictly prohibited and they were looking for signs of that on the way out during exit customs inspection.
Why the hell would you go there?
This is one of the most disturbing story I have ever heard for some reason. That boy was tortured beyond imagination.
I’ve heard of this case a while ago, through Lazy Masquerade specifically, and to this day this is one of the only cases that gives me a cold tingle on my spine. I feel so bad for his family, and thinking of what he must be feeling must have been agonizing for him. I hope he’s at a better place now.
My jaw was on the floor when i was watching him confess in the court about trying to steal a fking piece of paper.. im sorry this is making me almost gag with all the anxiety im feeling….
I had the same chilling feeling listening to him beg for his life in court. This is not a drama on tv, it's a real human being in true desperation and it's so hard to listen to it. Regardless of the circumstances, nobody deserves what happened to Otto and I hope he's resting peacefully now.
Same, I also originally heard this from Lazy Masquerade (great horror/thriller/crime RUclipsr)
The fact that this kind of thing can happen is just terrifying, my heart goes out to Otto and his family. I truly do not even believe it was him in that video. The build does not look the same at all.
There's also no way that was the only video footage they could have gotten, I'm sure there was at least one camera in the hall which Otto would have needed to pass by to get to the stairway.
And honestly with a smart student like him, if he actually wanted to steal a poster I don't think he would have done such a shitty job of only being able to pick it up and put it on the floor because he couldn't hide it.
Once I saw the notification I clicked the notification as fast I could
I love how you talk for literally 1 hour straight on one topic like idk how you do that but you’re a born storyteller
15:34 Cuba is, in fact, actually pretty easy to travel to. I’m not sure if it’s any different now since I travelled in 2020 but all it takes is for you to say you’re traveling to Cuba for learning purposes like “touring for learning their culture” to get a visa. The country is bizarre but incredibly beautiful.
Can you explain bizarre? 😂
It’s a unique choice of word that opens so many questions lol
Also the poverty is in no way due to the sanctions but also we can't lift the sanctions...just dont ask questions and believe what your McPropaganda tells you
@@mr.burkenstock4188 poor and starved, with bad quality free healthcare
@@mr.burkenstock4188well just for starters, in 2008 I went there on my Honeymoon (I'm Canadian 🇨🇦) and as soon as you collect your luggage and go up to leave the airport, they have MURALS painted with huge pictures of "political prisoners" that the USA has. 😳 I'm talking HUGE and everywhere! Really bad stuff about the USA! I had never been so relieved to be Canadian after I saw that, yikes! 👀
They also have an identical government building to copy the USA, what else, oh they monitor every single thing you are doing on the internet and you have to buy weird little cards with codes to even access the ancient internet service! You can NEVER talk about the government in a negative light, just don't even speak of them at all. Also due to the USA embargo, they only have classic cars from like the 50's and it's SO weird but also kind of cool. A few other things, but ya, it's an odd place for sure lol
If level 5 is so restricted, why is it so easy for random people to get access?
Ikrr what makes them think only staffs allowed board will help
North Korea is SUPERRRR based on discipline, all of the citizens are conditioned from a very young age to follow the “rules” of the country, so most North Koreans would have saw that sign and never thought twice of going in, I guess they thought the same of their guests
Your cadence throughout the entire episode is amazing. I appreciate the time you take to share these cases with us. I love that you respect & explain the nuances of ways of life of other countries and cultures. Great episode as always Stephanie
I was as dumb as you get as a young adult, dealing, drugs, etc. In my polluted and diluted mind even I knew going to North Korea would be one of the dumbest most unsafe things that an American could do
the misfits pfp fits lol
Sadly, many Americans do not take other cultures seriously until it is too late. Recall the young man in Singapore who was caned for his pranking in their country.
@@drmonicacrooks that's so strange to me, like if you're not going to be smart/respectful don't travel
I agree. Why would anyone choose N. Korea for a vacation?
You got that right, coming from a recoverd alcholic and drug addict. The islander. 😮
I lived in the old Soviet Block before the fall of the regime and my aunt actually went to NK in the 80's, there were no restrictions on us, communist brothers and sisters. To this days she says it's the worst place ever in the world. To those who are skeptical and think all the stories about life in NK sound too crazy and far fetched to be true: Well, they're true.
I thoroughly enjoy how well you tell the stories of these victims, as well as the opposition. You make sure to not step on any toes, and remain respectful. You're awesome!!
This is horrendous. My heart breaks for Otto and his parents. As a mother I can’t imagine the torture of your child going through such evil. Those people involved ( including those who did nothing to save him) will all be held accountable to God. 😞🙏
God said don't steal
@@carlosnavarro-cj2jvGod also provides mercy and forgiveness through His son Jesus Christ.
@@chericarreon7553 only of you follow his word which was don't steal
May their souls be tortured FOREVER for doing this!!!
@@ArinSauls did God tell him to break and enter and steal?
That security camera footage looks like this to me: They knew how many people were in there and tracked them. How many left and how many were staying. Since the room was bugged, it would have been easy for them to do that. If everyone in the middle were just collateral as Stephanie says and they used Otto- or planned to- they could have easily had someone, with the permission possibly of someone high up to do that exact thing to frame Otto since the video really isn't clear. They framed him for it and forced him to confess.
Exactly! The person "stealing" the post doesn't even try to fold or roll it up.
because its a holy fucking object to them
@@LKing-ue2jl meaning he was framed and dude stealing painting is a North Korean hints why he didn't roll it up. They hate Americans. They didn't like them being loud and abnoxious thinking it was a joke to f with north korean officials. They felt his group were disrespectful and one of em had to go
I don't know if he did it or not, but anyone not at least open to the possibility this could have been a setup done for some perceived political or propaganda advantage is being naive.
Honestly, knowing what I know about North Korea, and knowing what I know about how many young people seem clueless and careless, either version of the story is plausible. Regardless, what happened to him is disgraceful.
I heard the guy he was staying with had disappeared for hours and when they found him, he was in that place where they always have parades.
A family friend as a young woman went to Russia on a tour. This was before the collapse of the USSR. They were convinced their hotel room was bugged. After the maid had cleaned the room, the kids would talk amongst themselves that the maid forgot to leave soap. Then they left the room, and when they came back, there would be soap.
Maybe she just ran out and needed to stock up
Lol
or she realized she forgot the soap, and brought it back during a time she would not be intruding on them.
@@catsandceleryLol this, yeah I agree I don’t think it’s that deep LMFAO
@@DarkAngel2512Aaand this kind of naivety is why Americans wind up in these situations
"looks like it was filmed with a kiwi" is an adorable upgrade from the old "potato quality" phrase XD
His parents reactions break my heart.
They stayed so supportive and hopeful through an insanely high-stress, unrelenting, and tragic situation;
having faith in the leniency of the North Korean government based on past cases involving foreighners recieving lenient sentences (which didn't work out),
Then having faith in the U.S.'s current administrations negotition efforts (which failed them),
Then hearing he's coming home and having faith that the "great American health care system" could heal Otto (which, unfortunately, they couldn't at that point) only to be shocked upon finally seeing their beloved only son in the brutalized condition he was _actually_ returned in (blinded, beaten, unresponsive in a coma, etc.).
I can only imagine their pain and the depth of their strength & my heart and prayers go out to them.