In April, 21-year-old Won-moon Joo, an American student with a South Korean citizenship, illegally entered the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), more commonly known as North Korea.  In an exclusive interview granted to CNN, Joo recounted crossing the border from Dandong, China, a city that allows visitors to view the outskirts of the DPRK.  He says that he had to cross through two barbed wire fences, after which he trekked through farmland, until officials arrested him at a river.

However, Joo’s bizarre statements did not seem to add up.  In the conference room of a Pyongyang hotel, where he reportedly stayed in a private room, he stated, “I wanted to be arrested.”

Yet, if he knows enough about the reclusive country to essentially break into it, he must have known about the harsh, inhumane conditions that prisoners, even foreign, face in the DPRK.  Last year, the United Nations published a 372-page report describing the nation’s human rights violations.

When asked about his entrance, Joo said, “I thought that some great event could happen, and hopefully, that event could have a good effect on the relations between the north and the south,” although he did not know exactly what that event entailed.  “I hope that I will be able to tell the world how an ordinary college student entered the DPRK illegally, but, however, with the generous treatment of the DPRK, I will be able to return home safely,” he said.

The South Korean Unification Ministry spokesperson Lim Byeong-cheol said, “Our government strongly urges North Korea to repatriate student Joo to his family as soon as possible.”  Joo told CNN that he had not heard from officials on whether or not they will press charges or how much communication they will allow him to have with his family.