Sentenced American starts prison life in DPRK

PYONGYANG, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Pae Jun Ho, an American citizen, started his life at a "special prison" in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Tuesday, the official news agency KCNA reported on Wednesday.

Pae was sentenced to 15 years of compulsory labor for his anti-DPRK crime at a trial held on April 30, according to Section 60 (an attempt at state subversion) of the DPRK Criminal Law, said the KCNA without elaborating on what the "special prison" is.

Pae was arrested on Nov. 3 in Rason city and "admitted that he committed crimes aimed to topple the DPRK and were proved by evidence," according to the KCNA.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman said on May 5 that Pyongyang has no intention to invite U.S. diplomats to Pyongyang over the issue.

The United States on May 2 called on the DPRK to immediately release Pae. Pae, a Washington state resident, is at least the sixth American detained in the DPRK since 2009.

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