Jeffrey Fowle, an American who was arrested in North Korea for leaving a bible at his hotel, has been released.
Fowle was arrested at the airport back in May while trying to leave the country. He was detained for five months, before officials announced his release on Tuesday.
CNN reported that Fowle was released earlier in the day, but the news agency did not report it until he safely landed in Guam, after a government plane picked him up from N. Korea.
Jeffrey Fowle was among three Americans being detained in North Korea. The other two Americans, Kenneth Bae and Matthew Miller, are still being held.
Fowle was held captive by the North Korean government since around the time of his arrival in the country on April 29. His hometown is in Miamisburg, Ohio, where he has a wife and three children.
"Within a month I could be sharing a jail cell with Ken Bae," Fowle previously told Associated Press reporters. "I'm desperate to get back to them."
The atheist country has also held Korean-American Kenneth Bae in prison for over 20 months—the longest North Korean imprisonment of an American since the Korean War. Bae was working in the country as a tour guide, but officials allege that Bae's North Korean tour company was a front for Christian evangelical missions.
"The only hope that I have is to have someone from the U.S. come," he said. "But so far, the latest I've heard is that there has been no response yet. So I believe that officials here are waiting for that."
North Korea also alleged that Matthew Miller arrived in their country, tore up his tourist visa, and proclaimed that he is seeking asylum in the country. Miller refused to comment on whether that allegation is correct. He has been detained since April 10.
