YEREVAN, APRIL 29, ARMENPRESS. Kim Dong Chul, 62, was arrested in North Korea in October and had admitted to committing "unpardonable espionage" including stealing military secrets, the North's official KCNA news agency reported earlier, Reuters reports.

He was sentenced to 10 years hard labor on Friday.

"The accused confessed to all crimes he had committed ... and gathered and offered information on its party, state and military affairs to the South Korean puppet regime, which are tantamount to state subversive plots and espionage," it said.

State prosecutors sought a 15-year sentence. His defense attorney requested leniency considering his old age, KCNA said.

North Korea, which has been criticized over its human rights record for years, has used detained Americans in the past to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations.

Six foreigners, including Kim and three South Koreans, are known to be detained in the North.

North Korea has tightened security ahead of its first ruling party congress in 36 years, which will begin on May 6. It has also intensified its pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles since its fourth nuclear test in January.

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