The murder of Kim Jong-nam, the exiled half-brother of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un, in broad daylight at a busy international airport, has spawned various theories about the motive behind the killing.

South Korean intelligence said that the assassination of the elder Kim was a standing order from Kim Jong-un for the past five years, but many suspect there may have been a more urgent need to carry it out now.

An unnamed North Korea official said Kim Jong-nam could have been assassinated after defying his younger brother’s order to return home. Kim Jong-un, unnerved by his defiance and worries that he might defect to other countries, may have ordered a hit, the official said.

“Kim Jong-un is believed to have ordered that Kim Jong-nam be assassinated before he sought asylum overseas,” the official told US broadcaster Radio Free Asia. “Kim Jong-un was apparently worried about Kim Jong-nam fleeing to the United States or South Korea out of fear of being killed.”

Sources familiar with North Korea said that the reason why the leader Kim sought to bring his half-brother back home “immediately” may have been a handsome amount of money left by their father Kim Jong-il, the late leader of North Korea, and Jang Sung-taek, their uncle executed by the leader Kim in 2013.

In an interview with Yonhap News Agency, the sources said Kim Jong-nam was called “deep-pocket of Macau,” after obtaining wealth left by his uncle. Kim Jong-nam also received a huge inheritance from his father who felt pity for seeing his eldest son live in exile overseas. The Chinese city of Macau is where the deceased is believed to have lived with his family.

Cheong Seong-chang, a senior researcher at the Sejong Institute, speculated that Kim jong-un may have been angered by the latest media report that confirmed Kim Jong-nam’s attempt to defect to South Korea.

According to officials who worked under the previous South Korean government which is said to have pursued Kim Jong-nam in 2012, the scheme did not work out because Kim felt “overwhelmed” by the idea of living in the South, which is technically still at war with the North.

“We did ask him about his defection to the South,” an anonymous high-level official for the previous Lee Myung-bak administration said during an interview with local daily Segyeilbo. “But we eventually stopped pursuing him because he saw defection to the South as being too risky.”

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2017-02-15 09:27:54

Photo Gallery

Half-brother of N Korean leader assassinated in Malaysia

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AFP

Reuters

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Recently, a local daily reported that Kim Jong-nam had served in the 2000s as a middleman between officials in North Korea and incumbent South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who then worked as the leader of the main opposition party.

The newspaper also reported that Kim Jong-nam, who was then living in Beijing, delivered a letter that Park wrote to Kim Jong-il, North Korea’s late leader and the father of Kim Jong-nam and Kim Jong-un, in 2005. The letter showed Park requesting help on cultural exchange programs pushed by her family-run foundation.

Kim Jong-nam was killed Monday at Kuala Lumpur International Airport after being attacked by two unidentified women with poison. Seoul’s spy agency Wednesday confirmed the death of Kim, stopping short of saying that North Korea was behind it.

The eldest son of Kim Jong-il, he was once an heir apparent, but he had been living in foreign countries for years after apparently falling out of favour with his father for attempting to enter Japan with a fake passport in 2001.

Read also

• One of Kim Jong-nam’s assassins arrested: Malaysian police
• This is how North Korean assassins get their targets
• North Korean embassy cars seen at KL hospital mortuary
• Women trained to seduce … and kill
• Kim half-brother pleaded for his life: Seoul MPs
• Kim Jong-Nam, the ‘Little General’ who fell from grace

A white shirt bearing the phrase “LOL” worn by the woman suspected to have killed Kim Jong-nam was briefly sold online, before it was later taken down.

It was available on Taobao, China’s biggest e-commerce platform, for 6,324 yuan, or a staggering S$1,309.

The shirt went on sale on Wednesday, less than a day after grainy surveillance camera pictures of the suspect emerged.

The woman is in Malaysian custody now for the murder of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. She and an accomplice reportedly attacked him as he was waiting to board a plane in Malaysia.

Mr Kim was reportedly poisoned by chemicals, although official post-mortem results have not been released.

The shirt was listed online as “North Korea female who assassinated Kim Jong nam’s T-shirt”. It was also available in five sizes.

The woman, identified as 28-year-old Doan Thi Huong, is believed to be a Vietnamese national.

Her shirt went viral shortly after authorities released the footage.

A second woman has now also been arrested in connection with Mr Kim’s death.

North Korea is speculated to have been behind the attack, though there has not been any official confirmation.

Mr Kim had in the past spoken out against the Kim family’s control of North Korea, calling Kim Jong-un’s leadership “a joke.”

Read the full article here.

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The North Korean embassy has confirmed the identity of the North Korean man killed at KL International Airport 2 on Monday as Kim Jong-nam (pix), the half-brother of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Jong-nam had travelled using an authentic North Korean passport issued under the name “Kim Chol.”

“The North Korean embassy has confirmed the identity. This is what the police informed us.

“We have looked into the possibility that it is a fake passport.

Read also: Diplomatic passport was in name of one Kim Chol

“I think he carries two different identities (passports). It is an authentic passport,” he told a press conference here.

It is believed that Jong-nam had used the passport under the name of Kim Chol to travel incognito.

Ahmad Zahid gave assurance that security at KLIA2 “is at the highest level” despite the incident.

“Our airports’ safety is at the highest level. We are equipped with high definition cameras. This is a very, very isolated case,” he said.

Jong-nam, 45, was killed by two women who splashed his face with a chemical at the KLIA2 departure hall at about 9am on Monday. He was about to leave for Macau. The women later got into a taxi and fled.

Read also: Kim Jong-nam: The unfortunate crown prince’s downfall

One of the women, aged 29, who was in possession of a Vietnam travel document bearing the name of ‘Doan Thi Huong’ was arrested on Wednesday when she tried to board a flight out.

The other woman who has an Indonesian passport under the name of Siti Aishah was nabbed at 2am Thursday.

Both women have been remanded for seven days to assist in the investigations.

Police are looking for four men who were in the company of the two women at the airport when Jong-nam was killed.

Read also: Korean dictator ordered brother killed, South Korean spy chief says

The mother of a police officer killed in the line of duty in Jilin province died on Tuesday after having a heart attack at her son’s funeral.

Zhao Tianyu, who was in his 40s, was stabbed 21 times on Friday evening after confronting a suspect accused of illegally occupying an area of forest in Huinan county.

According to People’s Daily, Zhao’s mother, 74, fell ill during his funeral on Tuesday and was rushed to hospital for emergency treatment, but died as the result of cardiac arrest.

The woman, whose name was not disclosed, lived in Liaoning province, but had travelled to Huinan to join Zhao and his family for Spring Festival.

The police officer had been on duty for most of the holiday and was planning to have a traditional dinner with his mother on Lantern Festival, which fell on Saturday, according to media reports.

“I can’t believe my father is gone,” his 18-year-old daughter, Zhao Zihan, told People’s Daily.

“He will forever be my hero.”

Zhao Tianyu was deputy head of a police station in Huinan, and during a career spanning 21 years, he had cracked more than 200 criminal cases and apprehended more than 60 suspects.

He was twice awarded a national citation for bravery.

His colleague Yuan Long, director of political affairs at the station, paid tribute to an “excellent officer”.

He told China Daily: “Zhao was known for his quick thinking and great sense of humour. He was always ready to help others.”

Hu Jiafu, deputy governor of Jilin and head of Jilin Public Security Bureau, was quoted by Chinese media as saying, “He has left us, but his name and his heroic deeds will be remembered forever.”

After Zhao was stabbed, the police station deployed more than 160 officers to capture the suspect, who turned himself in on the same night.

Before he was killed in Malaysia, Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korea’s leader, lived quietly in the Asian gambling hub of Macau, avoiding controversy and seemingly relaxed about personal safety, according to sources close to him.

One veteran casino industry source, who has known him for over a decade, said he last met the affable, portly Kim at the Four Seasons Hotel in Macau last month, when he was eating cake and having a drink in the lobby coffee shop.

“I often saw him by himself. He never seemed to have bodyguards,” said the source who declined to be named given the sensitivity of the matter. “He didn’t seem nervous at all.”

Five years ago, Kim Jong Nam pleaded with his half-brother, Kim Jong Un, to withdraw a standing order for his assassination, according to the South Korean intelligence agency.

Some analysts have said Kim Jong Un believed his brother could be used in any overthrow of his regime. An attempt was made on Kim Jong Nam’s life in 2012, after which he did not stay long in any place, and travelled frequently between various cities in Southeast Asia and China.

US and South Korean government sources said they believed North Korean agents murdered Kim Jong Nam at an airport terminal in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.

A source with ties to top officials in Pyongyang and Beijing told Reuters that North Korea was not behind the killing.

“Kim Jong Nam has nothing to do with (North) Korea,” the source said. “There is no reason for (North) Korea to kill him.”

Friends in Macau, where he spent much of his time, said Kim Jong Nam was an outwardly relaxed man, often casually dressed, sometimes in jeans and sandals, and carried a Louis Vuitton shoulder satchel. He had a striking dragon tattoo on his back according to a source who went to the gym with Kim.

According to South Korea’s spy agency, Kim had lived under the protection of Chinese authorities in the China-ruled territory, with at least one of his known wives and two of his children.

Read also: Kim Jong-nam: The unfortunate crown prince’s downfall

FACEBOOK PAGE

A Facebook page under the name Kim Chol, which appears to be his, includes friends from numerous countries including France, Singapore and Switzerland and photos of Kim in various locales including Macau and Shanghai, as well as pictures of dogs.

Kim Chol was the name on the passport Kim Jong Nam used to travel to Malaysia, according to authorities there.

“I miss Europe,” he posted next to a 2008 picture of himself and a man standing on a yacht. “Living Las Vegas in Asia,” he posted in 2010.

His “likes” include French musician Serge Gainsbourg and two bars in Singapore, including one called Girls Bar Kimidori. He also “liked” Russian President Vladimir Putin and a Kim Jong Un impersonator calling himself Kim Jong “Um”.

Read also: Korean dictator ordered brother killed, South Korean spy chief says

According to the casino source and another Macanese businessman who had known him for years, Kim dabbled in business ventures in Macau including a Japanese restaurant called Gold Japanese Cuisine that closed last year.

The place, along a harbour-front boulevard, was shuttered, the metal grill stuffed with envelopes that included bank statements and electricity bills.

One notice above the door said power had been disconnected last March 15 due to “payment failure”.

It wasn’t possible to verify Kim’s ownership in the restaurant with an initial search for companies registered under Kim’s name and one known alias showing up no records at Macau’s Commercial Registry Office.

One longtime business associate said some of Kim’s family in Macau, including an adult son, were now under enhanced security.

“It’s very sensitive now,” said the Macanese businessman who claims he also once had trade dealings with Kim’s father.

“His family is under police protection, especially the son. I’m afraid he might be targeted. Anything is possible.”

At a sprawling middle class residential development on Macau’s Taipa island called Ocean Garden, a policeman was stationed outside one of the blocks where a resident and a security guard said Kim’s family now live. For several hours on Wednesday evening, four police vehicles and around a dozen officers, some armed, were nearby.

Macau authorities said in a statement in response to inquiries about Kim and his family that they were monitoring developments closely.

While Kim was once known to enjoy a lavish lifestyle with extended stays in hotel suites, a love of fine French wine and gourmet cuisine, according to people who socialised with him in the past, he seemed to have cut back on his spending recently.

Read also: Suspect in N Korea killing to appear in Malaysia court

His family in Macau had moved several times, first from an oceanfront villa to two modest residential high rises on Taipa island.

“He often just queued for taxis. It’s crazy that someone like him had to do that … He seemed careful with his money,” said the casino executive.

He liked the occasional flutter in the casinos, however, and was seen recently on the gaming floors of the Wynn Macau and the Four Seasons, according to a second casino source.

“He wasn’t a big gambler but liked betting a few thousand (Hong Kong dollars) each time, mostly baccarat. He would just drift around the tables watching mostly, then suddenly put down a bet.”

(Additional reporting by Pak Yiu in MACAU and Ju-min Park in SEOUL; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

PETALING JAYA – A Facebook page belonging to Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has been found and this may have led to his death, an independent news site reported.

Jong-nam, who was murdered at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA2) on Monday, was travelling using a passport identifying him as one “Kim Chol,” according to Malaysian police.

NK News, which focuses on North Korean news, reported that an FB account belonging to a “Kim Chol” contained past pictures of Jong-nam in Macau, China.

It quoted an unnamed source familiar with Jong-nam’s online activities as confirming that the profile did indeed belong to him.

Read Also: 2 women suspected of killing Kim Jong Nam may be dead: Report

NK News shared a screenshot of the page depicting several photographs of Jong-nam in Macau, where he reportedly lived in self-exile and was believed to be headed to when he was killed.

The portal reported that Jong-nam’s activities on his Facebook page seemed to indicate that he was not trying to hide himself from public view, and could not stay away from social media even when he was haunted and hunted.

It also quoted former intelligence secretary to South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, Cha Du-hyeogn, as saying that Jong-nam was known to have used commercial e-mail addresses to communicate.

“Open activities like these do not look like they are coming from a person who is constantly under the death threats.

Read Also: One of Kim Jong-nam’s assassins arrested: Malaysian police

“I think it is possible that Kim (Jong-nam) was careless, leading to his unsuspecting death,” Cha told the news site, which credits itself as a reliable source of information on North Korea.

In one Facebook photo posted in October 2008, Jong-nam is seen standing on a yacht with an unknown Caucasian man.

On March 4, 2013, he commented on this post, saying “I miss Europe!”

“Nice place!” Jong-nam said of another photo uploaded in 2010, in which he is standing in front of the five-star hotel, Wynn Macau.

Read Also: Kim Jong-Nam, the ‘Little General’ who fell from grace

The profile picture on the Kim Chol account is not of Jong-nam but that of a squirrel, with his most recent visible activity being on November 2015, when he temporarily set his profile picture to the French flag filter in solidarity with the victims of the Paris attacks.

Other information available on his profile page includes his education background, which states that he studied at the International School of Geneva and at the Lycee français de Moscou (Alexandre Dumas French School in Moscow).

Jong-nam was previously reported to have spent the most part of his youth at these two schools.