From The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES – A Los Angeles airport spokeswoman says a commercial airplane carrying an American missionary who was detained in North Korea for 43 days has landed in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles International Airport spokeswoman Nancy Castle says Robert Park arrived on a flight from Beijing Saturday evening. Earlier in the day, he flew to the Chinese capital from Pyongyang.

The 28-year-old Korean-American crossed the frozen Tumen River from China into North Korea on Dec. 25. He was carrying letters calling on leader Kim Jong Il to close the country’s notoriously brutal prison camps and step down from power — acts that could have risked execution in the hard-line communist country.

North Korea announced Friday that Park would be freed.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles airport spokeswoman says a commercial airplane carrying an American missionary who was detained in North Korea for 43 days has landed in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles International Airport spokeswoman Nancy Castle says Park arrived on a flight from Beijing Saturday evening. Earlier in the day, he flew to the Chinese capital from Pyongyang.

The 28-year-old Korean-American crossed the frozen Tumen River from China into North Korea on Dec. 25. He was carrying letters calling on leader Kim Jong Il to close the country’s notoriously brutal prison camps and step down from power — acts that could have risked execution in the hard-line communist country.

North Korea announced Friday that Park would be freed.