A U.S. citizen imprisoned in North Korea between 2016 and 2018 this month told NK News he had used his access in the country to collect sensitive information for American and South Korean spy agencies.

Speaking in his first extended interview with an English-language outlet since his release last year, Kim Dong-chul said he began spying in 2009 and had been recruited due to his unique position as a businessman working in the Rason Special Economic Zone (SEZ).