American detained over Pyongyang hotel incident — Tour agency

A University of Virginia student is under arrest in North Korea and is being accused of hostile acts.

A University of Virginia student has been arrested over an alleged “hostile” act, North Korea state media reported Friday.

It says the student allegedly plotted to undermine the North’s system and that has links to the USA government.

North Korea often announces news of detained foreigners to gain leverage against the West. Today’s announcement comes as South Korea, the US and other nations are preparing to announce sanctions against Pyongyang for testing a fourth nuclear bomb last month.

The proposed five-way dialogue will involve the five other members of what are known as the six-party talks, except North Korea.

“Gareth Johnson of China-based Young Pioneer Tours confirmed Warmbier was on one of its tours and said he had been detained in North Korea on January 2″.

The Swedish Embassy represents U.S. interests in North Korea.

Fowle said in 2014 he had left a Bible in a North Korean nightclub in hopes it would reach underground Christians.

Less than a week after carrying out the latest test, authorities in Pyongyang gave CNN access to Kim Dong-chul, who described himself as a naturalized US citizen detained on suspicion of spying for South Korea.

Wyoming City Schools spokeswoman Susanna Max said the arrested student, Otto Warmbier (WORM’-bir), was the salutatorian of his 2013 graduating class and played soccer for Wyoming High School in the suburb north of Cincinnati.

A Canadian pastor and a Korean-American man are also being held by the secretive East Asian state.

According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top 7 percent of incoming first-year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability.

It declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the USA was consulting with Sweden, which handles US consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

The six-party talks, involving the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China, began in 2003 as an effort to dismantle North Korea’s nuclear programme in exchange for aid.

In December, the North’s highest court sentenced Lim to life in prison, citing his “subversive plots” against the North’s regime.