Business Standard

Female suspect arrested over death of Kim Jong-nam

Image

IANS Kuala Lumpur/Seoul

A female suspect has been arrested in Malaysia in connection with the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half-brother.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Malaysian police said the woman was arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport where Kim Jong-nam was targeted in an apparent poisoning on Monday.

The arrest was made around at 8.20 a.m. (local time), the statement said adding that the suspect, identified from CCTV footage taken at the airport, was alone at the time of her detention.

The woman, a 28-year-old named Doan Thi Huong, was in possession of a Vietnamese passport, Malay Mail Online reported.

 

Investigators were awaiting the results of an autopsy on the body, believed to be of Kim Jong-nam.

Kim is believed to have been poisoned, South Korea's National Assembly Intelligence Committee Chairman Lee Cheol Woo told a press briefing. Lee did not say how Kim was poisoned or how South Korea obtained the information.

Kim was boarding a flight to the island of Macau, a Chinese territory, to visit his family when he was attacked, Lee said.

South Korea's Unification Ministry said it was working with Malaysian authorities, while the country's acting President and Prime Minister discussed the death at a National Security Council meeting.

Meanwhile, North Korean embassy officials and North Korea's ambassador to Malaysia Kang Chol were seen entering the mortuary at Kuala Lumpur Hospital where the body, believed to be of Kim Jong-Nam, was sent for autopsy, reported the Sun.

--IANS

soni/dg

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Don't miss the most important news and views of the day. Get them on our Telegram channel

First Published: Feb 15 2017 | 8:32 PM IST

Explore News