INQUISITR.COM / News & Politics

Kenneth Bae, American Prisoner In North Korea, Pleads For Help From US

By Patricia Didelot
Published on: 03:23 PST, Jan 20, 2014

Kenneth Bae, the American missionary held in North Korea is asking for help from the US in a new video released by the communist country.

The Japanese news agency Kyodo reports that Bae made the plea on Monday saying he wants to return to his family as soon as possible.

The American has been held in the secretive country for a year and is accused of subversion against Kim Jong-Un’s dictatorship.

He was condemned to 15-years of hard labor after he was arrested in 2012 while leading a tour group. North Korea’s Supreme Court said Kenneth Bale used this to form groups that want to overthrow the regime.

The 45-year-old ethnic Korean met with a number of media outlets in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital to plead with the American government.

During the interview, Kenneth Bae admitted he had broken North Korea’s laws. It is not clear if this statement is true or coerced by his captors.

The brief footage — of less than a minute — reported by Kyodo, showed the captive wearing a grey prison uniform with the number 103 and baseball cap as he was escorted by guards into the brief “press conference.”

This is the second time Bae has been allowed to do a video appearance since the time he was taken, however, it is not clear what the motives behind the release of the photos are.

However, the news comes after North Korea attempted to strike a more conciliatory tone with its neighbor South Korea, if the former walked away from military exercises with the US set to begin next month.

Kenneth Bae’s predicament has been in the news lately, after former NFL player Dennis Rodman coached a basketball team that played a game in North Korea to mark its dictator’s birthday.

Initially Rodman suggested that Bae had indeed committed crimes, which he didn’t specify, but now is changing his tune and has checked into rehab following the controversial visit and comments.

As reported by The Inquisitr Monday, Rodman apologized for comments he made about Kenneth Bae while he was drunk and for not using his influence with the tyrant Un in trying to at least inquire on the captive’s health.

“We were shocked and just outraged. We couldn’t believe our ears. You know he was in a position to do some good and to help advocate for Kenneth. He refused to do so but then instead he has chosen to hurl these outrageous accusations against Kenneth. He clearly doesn’t know anything about Kenneth, about his case and so we were appalled by that.” Kenneth Bae’s sister said of Rodman’s behavior in an interview with Anderson Cooper.

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