DPRK demands release of suspects over citizen's death

KUALA LUMPUR - The embassy of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday demanded Malaysian authorities release three suspects still held in connection with the death of a DPRK citizen.

Malaysian police had detained a total of four suspects following the death of the 46-year-old man on Feb 13 after being attacked by two women at a Kuala Lumpur airport, but later released one of them, a male from Malaysia.

The other three suspects still in custody are the two women, holding Vietnamese and Indonesian passports, and a man from the DPRK who was reportedly working in Malaysia.

In its third statement on the case, the DPRK embassy described the female suspects from Vietnam and Indonesia as "innocent".

It again cast doubt on the investigation carried out by the Malaysian police, accusing Malaysia of "insulting the sovereignty of DPRK".

The statement rebuffed Malaysian national police chief Khalid Abu Bakar's claim that the suspects knew they were using toxin, asking "how is it possible that these female suspects could be alive after the incident".

The statement marked a further escalation in the row between Malaysia and DPRK, with the Malaysian government already recalling its ambassador to Pyongyang.

On Wednesday, Khalid said the Malaysian police are seeking to question an official attached to the DPRK embassy and a staff from Air Koryo, the DPRK national carrier.

Police have also identified four other men from the DPRK, who they believe had left Malaysia on the same day of the death of the man and now are back in their country.

Khalid reiterated that DNA test would be needed to identify the victim, before the body could be released. The police have made a request to the DPRK embassy to find the family.

"No family members have come over to identify the deceased and assist our investigation," Khalid said.

The police earlier said the family were given two weeks to come and identify the body.

The death of the man has made global headlines and triggered a diplomatic spat between Malaysia and DPRK.

The man died on the way from a Malaysian airport to hospital. The police identified him as Kim Chol from the DPRK. Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the man was Kim Jong-nam, half-brother of the DPRK's top leader Kim Jong-un, but that was denied by the DPRK ambassador.

Xinhua