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Senate calls on State Department to continue investigation into possible kidnapping of BYU student by North Korea

Posted at 3:08 PM, Nov 30, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-30 17:29:23-05

WASHINGTON — A Senate resolution unanimously passed Thursday for the continued investigation into the disappearance of a Brigham Young University student and returned missionary, who may have been kidnapped in China by “elements” of the North Korean regime.

According to a press release made Friday, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) got unanimous consent for the passage of the resolution, calling on the State Department to continue investigating the disappearance of David Louis Sneddon, who went missing from China in 2004.

Sneddon went missing while hiking in China’s Yunnan Province, a website called helpfinddavid.com, which was set up by his concerned friends and family, stated. It also said that Sneddon may have been kidnapped by “elements of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea).”

“At the time of his disappearance, David had his whole life ahead of him,” Lee said. “He was eager to get back to BYU’s beautiful campus and had recently signed up to take the LSAT. But he never had the chance to do any of these things, and the Sneddon family deserves to know why.”

Lee and Rep. Chris Stewart (R-UT)  sent a letter in 2017 urging President Trump to look into North Korean involvement in the disappearance of Sneddon.

Lee stated that it was the responsibility of the United States government to keep American citizens safe, both at home and abroad. He urged the State Department to continue investigating “all plausible explanations behind David’s disappearance, and leaving no stone unturned in trying to return one of our brothers to his family.”

The full Senate resolution can be read here.