Otto Warmbier, a student at the University of Virginia, was arrested while visiting North Korea as part of a tour group in January 2016. The visit, organised by a China-based budget tour operator that specialises in off-the-beaten-track destinations, was a five-day trip to experience North Korea during the New Year’s Eve period. His father later told the Washington Post that he was “curious about their culture” and “wanted to meet the people of North Korea”.
