Kim Jong Nam's murder: Suspect was 'paid for TV pranks'

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A woman accused of poisoning Kim Jong Nam, the half brother of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader Kim Jong Un, at a Malaysian airport was paid to take part in a series of pranks before his death, her lawyer told a court in Malaysia on Thursday.

Siti Aisyah, from Indonesia, is accused with another woman, Doan Thi Huong, from Vietnam, of murdering Kim Jong Nam by smearing his face with liquid VX at Kuala Lumpur airport on February 13 last year.

The women, in their 20s, have denied carrying out the murder charge, saying they were tricked. They face death by hanging if found guilty.

This file photo taken by Kyodo shows Kim Jong Nam arriving at Beijing airport in Beijing, China, on February 11, 2007. /Reuters Photo

Aisyah's lawyer Gooi Soon Seng has argued that the women were recruited to take part in what they thought were prank TV shows and had been paid for playing similar pranks at shopping malls and airports elsewhere in the weeks before the killing.

The supposed pranks involved sneaking up behind people and smearing their face with a lotion, according to Gooi.

The lawyer told the court that Aisyah had been paid 4,000 Malaysian ringgit (1,024 US dollars) by Hong Song Hac, a person from the DPRK, to fly to Macao where Kim was reportedly living.

Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong (L) and Indonesian Siti Aishah are seen in this combination picture from undated handouts released by the Royal Malaysia Police to on February 19, 2017. /VCG Photo

He said the trip was arranged so she could play pranks for a reality TV program, but it was canceled for unspecified reasons.

The police could not confirm Gooi’s account but said text message records taken from Aisyah’s mobile phone on February 8 showed her telling a friend that she was going to Macao for “shooting.”

Pyongyang has denied any involvement in the killing, but four men believed to be from the DPRK, including Hong, have also been charged in the case.

Source(s): AFP ,Reuters