Appoint official spokesman on Jong Nam killing, says lawyer

Conflicting statements will only help sustain perception that Putrajaya is conspiring with enemies of North Korea and impact case against suspects.

PETALING JAYA: A lawyer has urged Putrajaya to appoint a minister or deputy minister to act as official spokesman to the media on the on-going investigation into the murder of Kim Jong Nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla said of late there have been conflicting statements issued to the media and this could affect court proceedings later.

“The press are hungry for news on this high profile case and the authorities should know what ought to be divulged and keep away other information from public domain for the moment,” the lawyer said in his Facebook posting.

Haniff suggested the spokesman come from one of three possible ministries closely linked to the investigation and based on relevance, namely the home ministry, health ministry or foreign affairs ministry.

He said this in response to comments made by Indonesian deputy ambassador to Malaysia, Andreano Erwin, who told the media that the Indonesian suspect in police custody, Siti Aisyah, was allegedly paid RM400 and given “baby oil” to smear on the face of the victim as part of a TV reality show prank.

According to a report in the New Straits Times, the diplomat said Siti told him during a 30-minute interview that she did not know that it was poison.

“She only said in general that somebody had asked her to do (it) and she didn’t know what would happen next,” the daily quoted Andreano as saying.

However, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar had on Feb 22, said initial police investigations have revealed that the murder could have been planned with a series of rehearsals carried out in advance.

Khalid said the two women, including a Vietnamese, detained in connection with the crime were said to have been involved in a number of rehearsals at shopping malls and a convention centre in Malaysia before executing the deadly task on Jong Nam.

“From our investigations, we now know that they did rehearse the scenario before finally (executing the task) on the deceased,” Khalid said.

Vietnamese passport holder Doan Thi Huong, 28, and Siti 25, are under remand to facilitate police investigations.

“They knew it was a toxic substance to kill Jong Nam. At first, Siti Aisyah approached the deceased and (allegedly) wiped his face with the VX nerve agent and this was followed by the Vietnamese suspect.

“The two suspects then went straight to the toilet to clean their hands immediately after the attack. They knew it was toxic,” Khalid said.

Jong Nam, who is the eldest son of former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, arrived in Malaysia on Feb 6, and was at klia2 to catch a 10.30am flight to Macau on Feb 13 when he was attacked by two women.

He sought help at the customer service counter and was treated at the airport clinic but died on the way to Putrajaya Hospital.

Aside from Doan and Siti, the police have also detained North Korean Ri Jong Chul.

Four other male suspects, all North Korean, fled the country on the same day of the murder. They have been identified as Ri Ji Hyon, Hong Song Hac, O Jong Gil and Ri Jae Nam.

Two other North Korean suspects, Hyon Kwang Song, who is the second secretary with the embassy in Kuala Lumpur, and Air Koryo employee, Kim Uk Il, are also wanted by police to help in the investigations. They are believed to be still in the country.

Haniff said the conflicting statements between Khalid and Andreano could pose a problem to the prosecution should the suspects be eventually charged with a criminal offence related to the killing of Jong Nam.

He said the job of the police was to investigate and collect evidence on the crime while prosecutors would have to go through the evidence to decide whether they have a case based on the applicable laws in Malaysia.

“Finally, it is for the government lawyers to present evidence before the court and not the police,” he said.

He said the rule of natural justice was for the court to decide if an accused person was guilty and not conduct a trial by media.

He said the high profile case had high political connotation and any discrepancy during investigation could invite criticisms from the North Korean government.

“We should not give room for any third party to meddle into the probe and help sustain the perception that Putrajaya is conspiring with enemies of North Korea,” Haniff said. -FMT