Kim Jong Nam, the estranged relative of Kim Jong Un and once seen as heir apparent to the North's leadership, died in agony after having his face smeared with a banned nerve agent as he waited at Kuala Lumpur airport in February, 2017. The sensational killing made headlines around the world, and sparked a furious diplomatic row as Seoul accused Pyongyang of an elaborate plot to murder a figure who had spent years in exile and been critical of his family's rule. Doan Thi Huong from Vietnam and Indonesian Siti Aisyah were arrested after being spotted on CCTV approaching Kim but always denied murder. The women insisted they were tricked into carrying out the hit by North Korean agents who said it was a reality TV show prank and fled Malaysia after the killing. They went on trial, but in March prosecutors dropped the murder charge against Aisyah after diplomatic pressure and she flew home. … [Read more...] about Vietnamese woman in Kim Jong Nam murder case freed
Kim jong un
Murder at the airport: The brazen attack on Kim Jong Nam
KUALA LUMPUR: Early on a February morning two years ago, a balding man in a grey suit entered Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur airport, glanced up at the departures board and walked to check in for his flight to Macau. Moments later, his killers struck.A few steps away from a Starbucks cafe and a Puffy Buffy Malaysian food stall, a woman stood in front of Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korea's leader, to distract him.Her partner approached from behind, pulled from her handbag a cloth drenched in liquid VX, a chemical weapon, reached around his head and clamped it to his face.That was enough to deliver deadly poison to the portly 46-year-old relative of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.Carrying a backpack containing US$100,000 and four North Korean passports, Kim Jong Nam had been travelling under his pseudonym "Kim Chol", police said.After the attack, he approached a help desk and explained that someone seemed to have grabbed or held his face and now he felt dizzy. He was … [Read more...] about Murder at the airport: The brazen attack on Kim Jong Nam
Sole remaining Kim Jong Nam assassination suspect freed
KUALA LUMPUR: A Vietnamese woman accused of assassinating the North Korean leader's half-brother was freed from prison on Friday (May 3), ending legal proceedings stemming from the killing despite criticism that the real culprits never faced justice.After a lengthy trial, Doan Thi Huong pleaded guilty last month to a lesser charge of "causing injury" over the 2017 assassination of Kim, making her the only person convicted for a murder that made headlines around the world.Weeks earlier, Indonesian Siti Aisyah - the only other person to face trial over the killing carried out with a banned nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur airport - was released and flew home after her murder charge was withdrawn.The pair always denied having committed murder, arguing that they were pawns in a plan hatched by North Korean agents who fled Malaysia after the killing.South Korea accused Pyongyang of plotting the assassination.Huong, who received a jail term of several years, which was cut due to … [Read more...] about Sole remaining Kim Jong Nam assassination suspect freed
Vietnamese woman in Kim Jong Nam murder case freed from prison
KUALA LUMPUR: A Vietnamese woman accused of assassinating the North Korean leader's half-brother was freed from prison on Friday (May 3), ending legal proceedings stemming from the killing despite criticism that the real culprits never faced justice.Doan Thi Huong was "released at about 7.20am" from a prison outside Kuala Lumpur, her lawyer Hisyam Teh Poh Teik told AFP. Journalists waiting outside the jail saw a van and a car with tinted windows race past.After a lengthy trial, Huong pleaded guilty last month to a lesser charge of "causing injury" over the 2017 assassination of Kim, making her the only person convicted for a murder that made headlines around the world.Weeks earlier, Indonesian Siti Aisyah - the only other person to face trial over the killing carried out with a banned nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur airport - was released and flew home after her murder charge was withdrawn.The pair always denied having committed murder, arguing that they were pawns in a plan … [Read more...] about Vietnamese woman in Kim Jong Nam murder case freed from prison
Sole remaining Kim Jong Nam assassination suspect to be freed
KUALA LUMPUR: A Vietnamese woman accused of assassinating the North Korean leader's half-brother will be freed on Friday (May 3), ending legal proceedings stemming from the shocking hit despite criticism that the real culprits never faced justice.After a lengthy trial, Doan Thi Huong pleaded guilty last month to a lesser charge of "causing injury" over the 2017 assassination of Kim Jong Nam, making her the only person convicted for a murder that made headlines around the world.Weeks earlier, Indonesian Siti Aisyah - the only other person to face trial over the killing carried out with a banned nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur airport - was released and flew home after her murder charge was withdrawn.The pair always denied having committed murder, arguing that they were pawns in a plan hatched by North Korean agents who fled Malaysia after the killing.South Korea accused Pyongyang of plotting the assassination.Huong, who received a jail term of several years which was cut due to … [Read more...] about Sole remaining Kim Jong Nam assassination suspect to be freed