KUALA LUMPUR - A preliminary report showed that VX nerve agent was used in the murder of North Korea’s Kim Jong Nam, Malaysian police said.
The substance, listed as a chemical weapon under the Chemical Weapons Convention Act 2005, was found on the victim’s face and eyes, the police said in an emailed statement on Friday. The eldest son of late leader Kim Jong Il was murdered in a Kuala Lumpur airport on Feb 13.
His death has raised questions about the stability of Kim Jong Un’s regime as he accelerates plans to build nuclear weapons that threaten the US, South Korea and Japan. South Korean government officials have speculated that Kim Jong Un was behind the killing of his half-brother, a critic of his leadership who had lived outside the country for years.
Police have arrested four people linked to the murder, including two women who carried out the attack, and are seeking four North Koreans whom they believe fled to Pyongyang on the day Kim Jong Nam was killed. A diplomat at the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, an employee at Air Koryo, and a North Korean living in Malaysia for three years are also wanted for questioning, police said.
The female suspects were trained to swipe the poison on the victim’s face, and knew the substance was toxic, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said on Wednesday, dismissing reports that they were involved in a television prank. They had practiced at a couple of shopping malls in Kuala Lumpur, and were instructed to wash their hands after the attack, he said.
Police have yet to confirm the identity of the victim, whose travel document named him as Kim Chol. They expected his next-of-kin to come to Malaysia in a day or two to identify and claim the body, Bernama news agency reported.