What Story Hit Hard for Deborah Norville? #shorts

Inside Edition anchor Deborah Norville shares why the story of Otto Warmbier affected her so deeply.

[masilomorake]

When a country is cruel to its citizens, you never dare go there, as an outsider.

[karenthompson]

DON’T GO TO NORTH KOREA Why would you even want to go there! That’s insane over a poster! Wow

[sarahfarrell]

That story broke my heart too. Otto suffered so much. Rest in peace Otto, I'm so sorry for you and your family.

[ShhhandGiggles]

Story: he went to NK as part of a tour group. While waiting for his departure flight back to the States, he was arrested for allegedly removing a propaganda poster from a staff only area in his hotel. He was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment with hard labor.

He was in their custody from January 2016 to June 2017. When he was released he was in a comatose state. He died after his feeding tube was removed.

NK later claimed he died from botulism and a sleeping pill. This was their statement following his death:

"Although we had no reason at all to show mercy to such a criminal of the enemy state, we provided him with medical treatments and care with all sincerity on humanitarian basis until his return to the U.S., considering that his health got worse."

NK, ladies and gentlemen. Don't go to a country where people die trying to escape.

[ndKidd]

It’s crazy that the cctv was so grainy that the figure taking the poster couldn’t even be distinguished clearly as Otto. He was blamed because he had been left in his hotel room to sleep off a headache, while the rest of his group went to their scheduled activity and no one could clearly give him an alibi. The floor that poster was taken from wasn’t even a floor easily accessible to hotel guests but somehow Otto was absolutely guilty according to nkorea

Talk about a cautionary tale…

[sammarchetti]

He was returned with severe head trauma blind deaf and screaming, And died days later.

[Mysmero]

Man they wanted to make an example of him, that he wasn’t going be coming back whole 😢

[whitneywoodall]

They murdered him...sent his shell of a body home. So very sad...😢

[kristinakate]

Rotten Mango did a whole episode on this! The parents say when Otto came back home he was disfigured... Teeth pulled and re-inserted, bones broken and re-fused. North Korea sent him back when he apparently went into a coma (after almost 2 years of psychological torture), but US doctors said he'd likely been in a coma for several months already based on his condition. Some people think North Korea was using him as a test subject for potentially lethal and untraceable drugs. The worst part is, the video of Otto taking down a poster shown here, is the best evidence North Korea had for keeping him prisoner. It was never even confirmed to be Otto in this clip...

[lricci]

Just watching this made me sob all over again. I have never been so affected by any other story. The horror of all he must have endured...I have no words. I have been in the position of being in other countries for a school exchange trip, having a wonderful time, but still feeling homesick and alone at times. Can you even begin to imagine what it must have been like to be told you were not going home, but would be imprisoned, then held and tortured. It sickens me that our government wouldn't do more. There was never any justice for him.

[scarlettapplejaxsaj]

Watching Otto have to read that false statement under duress and on camera was just heartbreaking. I hope his family knows he was not forgotten and that many people hold him in their thoughts. ❤

[DAWGnROADIE]

Yeah, they don’t like Americans. Why would you go there. There is plenty to do in the US and Canada.

[sharonrauschuber]

I would never let any of kids travel to any of those countries this is heartbreaking

[KittMouri]

It is really touching to see a reporter with such empathy for another soul. ❤

[tanyabishop]

There was never actually any proof that was him taking that poster off the wall. The location of the poster was on a floor that only employees could go on. It had no elevator access and was locked. He was drunk, passed out, and laying in the exact same position as when his leader left him. His group went out on the town a little longer, but he didn’t feel well. The problem was the hotel knew he was alone. They have cameras everywhere and never showed the footage of him leaving his room. They also never say the date of this video “proof”. They interrogated and tortured him until he “confessed”. They claim he wanted the poster to take back and show his friends, but you can buy those posters everywhere.
I won’t feel bad for them when they get in trouble with God. This whole story makes me sick and angry.

[SA-ydxk]

I remenber that story. I had just lost my son who was his age after 39 days in a coma. I knew what his mother must have gone through and it broke me inside. The sheer agony of watching your child die wondering what they did to him to leave him a vegetable.

[itsnoterica]

See the most messed up thing is there wasn’t even any concrete evidence that it was him who took the poster off the wall. In fact, there’s witness statements from the other ppl in his tour group that suggest that it wasn’t him who took the poster off the wall.

[cindywilbur]

Otto DID NOT take that poster. Every one of the students and chaperones said Otto and the whole class was nowhere near the hotel at the time the poster was taken

[mwatsonmw]

I can't imagine the level of terror and absolute fear that had to be racing in his So SAD😢😢😢😢

[vivianasong]

I just busted out crying when I found out he was so damaged when he got home. Just broke my heart.