Dennis Rodman Checks Into Rehab After N. Korea Backlash

Dennis Rodman checked into a rehabilitation facility on Wednesday after his agent says his drinking escalated to a new level. The former basketball star has been in headlines recently concerning his f...
Dennis Rodman Checks Into Rehab After N. Korea Backlash
Written by Amanda Crum
  • Dennis Rodman checked into a rehabilitation facility on Wednesday after his agent says his drinking escalated to a new level.

    The former basketball star has been in headlines recently concerning his friendship with Kim Jung Un and recent trips to North Korea. Rodman, who at one time supported the release of American prisoner Kenneth Bae, recently said that his imprisonment was justified, angering the man’s family.

    “Dennis Rodman could do a lot of good by advocating for Kenneth to Kim Jong-un, but instead he has decided to hurl outrageous accusations at my brother, insinuating that Kenneth has done something sinister,” Bae’s sister, Terri Chung, said in a statement. “He is clearly uninformed about Kenneth’s case, and he is certainly not in any position to pass judgment on Kenneth Bae, who has never any hostile intentions against the DPRK.”

    During a recent visit to North Korea, Rodman gave an interivew to CNN and became visibly upset when speaking with Chris Cuomo about Bae’s imprisonment. Bae, an American citizen, was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for “crimes against the state” after he led a tour group there, and although the exact charges are fuzzy, Rodman seemed to have changed his mind about whether or not Bae was guilty. When pressed by Cuomo about his relationship with the North Korean leader and his thoughts on Bae, Rodman began yelling, saying he didn’t care what the interviewer thought.

    “Dennis Rodman came back from North Korea in pretty rough shape emotionally. The pressure that was put on him to be a combination ‘super human’ political figure and ‘fixer’ got the better of him,” his agent, Darren Prince, said Sunday in a statement. “He is embarrassed, saddened and remorseful for the anger and hurt his words have caused.”

    Rodman is reportedly in a New Jersey facility for a 30-day program. He has not issued a statement.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

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