美国学生失踪12年 最后竟成金正恩的老师?

If true, it could be one of the most astonishing stories to ever emerge from North Korea.

如果这是真的，那么这将会是朝鲜最匪夷所思的故事。

A media report last Friday repeated claims that a 24-year-old American man was kidnapped in China in 2004 and taken to Pyongyang to work as an English tutor for current leader Kim Jong Un.

上周五，再次有媒体报道称，一位24岁的美国学生于2004年在中国被绑架后，被带到朝鲜给现任领导人金正恩当英语老师。

However, the US State Department says there is no evidence to confirm reports that missionary David Sneddon was seized while hiking in China's Yunnan province.

然而，美国国务院表示，并无证据证明失踪的大卫·斯奈登是在中国云南登山时被抓到了朝鲜。

"The embassy in Beijing has been in regular, ongoing contact with the local authorities since David Sneddon was reported missing." US State Department Spokesman John Kirby said.

美国国务院发言人约翰·科比表示：“自斯奈登被报道失踪后，北京的大使馆一直有定期与当地政府保持联系。”

Sneddon went missing near the Tiger Leaping Gorge, just over 12 years ago, and when investigators failed to find any trace of him, Chinese authorities suggested he may have fallen to his death.

12年前，斯奈登在云南虎跳峡附近失踪，调查人员找不到任何线索，中国政府表示，他可能已经遇难。

Roy and Kathleen Sneddon have been searching for their son for more than a decade, including trips to China and petitions to the United States congress, according to their .

在过去十多年来，斯奈登的父亲罗伊和母亲凯思琳从未放弃过寻找儿子，他们还建了一个“帮忙寻找大卫”的网站，上面记录着他们到中国去找寻以及到美国国会请愿的过程。

"Our goal is to ensure that the US government does everything possible to investigate his likely abduction and secure his safe return to the US."

“我们的目的就是请求美国政府用尽所有可能的办法，调查我们儿子是否被绑架，并保证他安全的回到美国。”

According to his parents' website, Sneddon spoke fluent Korean as well as some Mandarin. He had been working in Seoul, South Korea as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

据他父母网站上的介绍，斯奈登会讲流利的韩语和一些中文。此外，斯奈登还曾在韩国首尔的一家教堂担任过传教士。