# List of foreign nationals detained in North Korea

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This is a list of foreign nationals who have been detained in North Korea. Excluded from the list are any persons who were detained while on active military duty and held as prisoners of war or military defectors. Also excluded are people abducted in other countries and brought into North Korea.

## Detained Australians

| Name | Detained | Released | Days in detention | Reason for detention | Ref. |
| John Short | 16 February 2014 | 3 March 2014 | 15 | Unauthorized religious activity | |
| Alek Sigley | 25 June 2019 | 4 July 2019 | 9 | Espionage, was arrested while studying in Pyongyang. After negotiations through the Swedish embassy in North Korea, he was released. | |

## Detained South Korean citizens

| Name | Detained | Released | Days in detention | Reason for detention |
| Min Young Mi | 20 June 1999 | 25 June 1999 | 5 | "Preaching defection". Detained after conversing with a North Korean tour guide. |
| Kim Jung Wook (alternative spelling: Kim Jong Uk) | 8 October 2013 | In detention | 4,107 | Unknown, possibly connected with Christian missionary work. Alleged activities as a "South Korean National Intelligence Service agent". |
| Joo Won Moon | 22 April 2015 | 5 October 2015 | 166 | Illegally entering North Korea via China |
| Kim Kook Kie | June 2015 | In detention | 3,499 | Committing "anti-DPRK espionage activities under the manipulation of the U.S. and puppet South Korea" |
| Choi Chun Kil | June 2015 | In detention | 3,499 | Committing "anti-DPRK espionage activities under the manipulation of the U.S. and puppet South Korea" |
| Ko Hyon Chol | July 2016 | In detention | 3,103 | Alleged kidnapping of orphans |

## Detained U.S. citizens

| Name | Detained | Released | Days in detention | Reason for detention | Ref. |
| Evan Hunziker | 24 August 1996 | 27 November 1996 | 95 | Illegally entering North Korea | |
| Kwang Duk Lee | 26 May 1998 | 27 August 1998 | 93 | Espionage | |
| Karen Jung-sook Han | 17 June 1999 | 20 July 1999 | 33 | Committing "an illegal act". Was accused of insulting local officials. | |
| Euna Lee | 17 March 2009 | 4 August 2009 | 140 | Illegally entering North Korea (see 2009 imprisonment of American journalists by North Korea) | |
| Laura Ling | 17 March 2009 | 4 August 2009 | 140 | Illegally entering North Korea (see 2009 imprisonment of American journalists by North Korea) | |
| Robert Park | 25 December 2009 | 6 February 2010 | 43 | Illegally entering North Korea | |
| Aijalon Gomes | 25 January 2010 | 26 August 2010 | 213 | Illegally entering North Korea | |
| Eddie Yong Su Jun | November 2010 | 28 May 2011 | ~208 | "Committing a crime" against North Korea | |
| Kenneth Bae | 3 November 2012 | 8 November 2014 | 735 | Unauthorized religious activity | |
| Merrill Newman | 26 October 2013 | 7 December 2013 | 42 | Issues related to his service in the Korean War | |
| Matthew Miller | 10 April 2014 | 8 November 2014 | 212 | Acts hostile to the DPRK while entering under the guise of a tourist. He had travelled to North Korea intending to get arrested. | |
| Jeffrey Fowle | 4 May 2014 | 21 October 2014 | 170 | Acting "contrary to the purpose of tourism" by leaving a Bible at a nightclub | |
| Arturo Pierre Martinez | 10 November 2014 | December 2014 | ~21 | Illegally entering North Korea | |
| Sandra Suh | 8 April 2015 | 8 April 2015 | 0 | Deported for "covertly producing photos and videos to use in the anti-DPRK smear campaign" | |
| Miles, no surname given | 13 August 2015 | October 2015 | ~49 | Illegally entering North Korea. Previously sought legal long-term residence. Story initially went unreported, but was later verified and broken by NK News on condition of anonymity. | |
| Kim Dong Chul | October 2015 | 9 May 2018 | 952 | Espionage | [33] [34][35] |
| Otto Warmbier | 2 January 2016 | 13 June 2017 | 529 | Committing "hostile acts" against the DPRK by allegedly stealing a propaganda poster from his hotel. Released back in a vegetative state, later succumbing to injuries inflicted from "severe brain damage". | |
| Kim Sang-duk (Tony Kim) | 21 April 2017 | 9 May 2018 | 384 | Committing "hostile criminal acts with an aim to subvert the country" | |
| Kim Hak-song | 7 May 2017 | 9 May 2018 | 368 | Committing "hostile acts" against the state | |
| Bruce Byron Lowrance | 16 October 2018 | 16 November 2018 | 31 | Illegally entering North Korea via China | |

## Other detained foreign citizens

| Name | Country | Detained | Released | Days in detention | Reason for detention |
| Alí Lameda⠀ | Venezuela | September 1967 | 27 September 1974 | ~2,555 | Communist and translator working in the Foreign Affairs Ministry of North Korea, reportedly for joking about Kim Il-sung at an official feast. In a 1975 interview, Lameda expressed that his detention could have been a result of pressure by the Communist Party of Cuba after the Communist Party of Venezuela decided to accept pacification and abandon arms. |
| Eduardo Murillo | Chile | September 1967 | May 1968 | ~-243 | Same background as Ali Lameda, see above |
| Hyeon Soo Lim | Canada | February 2015 | 9 August 2017 | ~920 | "Harming the dignity of the supreme leadership, trying to use religion to destroy the North Korean system" |
| Jacques Sedillot | France | September 1967 | 27 September 1974 | ~2,555 | Same background as Ali Lameda, see above |