ICC NOTE: Kenneth Bae is a Korean-American Christian missionary who had visited North Korea in 2013 where he was arrested and imprisoned by the regime for over a year. Bae experienced the hardships of North Korean labor camps, but remained steadfast in the Lord realizing God would never leave him nor forsake him. in 2014 Kenneth Bae was released back into the loving arms of his family and his country. His ordeal inside the most reclusive nation on earth will be included inside his new book chronicling his time in prison, his feelings on the experience, and most importantly God’s protection and grace over him. 

3/22/2016 North Korea/United States (CNN) – The longest-serving American detainee in North Korea is finally speaking out about his experience in an upcoming book.

In a pre-taped statement tied to the May 3 release of his new tell-all, Kenneth Bae said the cause of his two-year detainment in North Korea was accidental.

“I was arrested by North Korean authority because I made a terrible mistake by carrying a portable hard drive containing hostile, anti-North Korean material by accident,” he said in the YouTube statement.

He does not elaborate what he means by the anti-North Korean material nor does he address possible criticisms of his actions in the video, which runs less than two minutes.

In April 2013, the Korean-American missionary was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for what the North Korean government described as “hostile acts” against the country. Bae said he was charged with trying to overthrow the country.

Bae is among a string of Americans who’ve served time in North Korea and have followed a familiar pattern. American detainees have usually been trotted out to publicly apologize and beg forgiveness on North Korean state media. Then, they are later released after entreaties by the U.S. government or a high-profile visit by a U.S. official to Pyongyang.

Last week, Otto Frederick Warmbier was similarly sentenced to 15 years of hard labor after allegedly “taking down a political slogan” from a North Korean hotel while on an organized tour. The University of Virginia college student broke down, pleaded for mercy and called it “the worst mistake of my life.” Another American, Kim Dong Chul, remains in North Korean custody.

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