North Korean man executed for calling a friend in South Korea on mobile phone

A North Korean factory worker has been executed by firing squad for sneaking news out of the country on his illicit mobile phone.

The armaments factory worker was accused of divulging the price of rice and other information on living conditions to a friend who had defected to South Korea years ago.



The man, surnamed Chong, made calls to the defector using an illegal Chinese mobile phone, according to an unnamed North Korean security agency official. The execution took place by firing squad in late January in Hamhung.

Mobile phone use in North Korea is tightly restricted, although the country introduced an advanced network in partnership with Cairo-based Orascom Telecom in 2008. North Koreans who manage to make illegal overseas mobile calls mostly use networks in China.