North Korea reportedly notified Italy that the daughter of its top diplomat in Rome returned home after her father left his post.

North Korean diplomat Jo Song-gil and his wife went missing in November of last year, raising speculation that they had applied for asylum in an unspecified country. 

The Italian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that they had been informed by North Korea on December fifth that Jo and his wife had left the embassy on November tenth and that their daughter had been repatriated back to the North on November 14th.

North Korea reportedly informed Italy that the girl had asked to return home to be with her grandparents and was accompanied by female staff members of the North Korean embassy. 

The statement said the Italian Foreign Ministry does not have any further information about the affair.

[Photo : KBS News]