As they climbed the plane’s stairs they heard an inhuman howl: US student’s parents denounce North Korea

The parents of a young Ohio man who was detained in North Korea for more than a year and died soon after being released said Tuesday he was “jerking violently,” howling, and “staring blankly” when he returned home on a medical flight.

Fred and Cindy Warmbier appeared on Fox News’ Fox & Friends morning TV show amid an escalating war of words between the Trump administration and North Korea. A North Korean official has claimed US President Donald Trump has, in effect, declared war, which the White House denied.

Otto Warmbier’s father said they wanted to speak out about his condition after hearing North Korea claiming to be a victim that has been picked on.

“North Korea is not a victim. They’re terrorists,” he said. “They kidnapped Otto. They tortured him. They intentionally injured him. They are not victims.”

The parents described the condition his family found him in when they went aboard an air ambulance that arrived June 13 in Cincinnati.

“We thought he was in a coma but you couldn’t call it a coma,” said Cindy Warmbier.