Arrest warrant for diplomat
Published on: Sunday, February 26, 2017
Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia said on Saturday it will issue an arrest warrant for a North Korean diplomat wanted for questioning over the murder of Kim Jong-nam if he doesn't voluntarily cooperate with the police."Reasonable" time will be given for the diplomat to come forward before police take further action, said Selangor police chief Datuk Seri Abdul Samah Mat.On Wednesday, Malaysia said 44-year-old Hyon Kwang Song, a second secretary at the North Korean embassy here, was wanted for questioning over the death of the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
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Abdul Samah said if the person concerned did not cooperate, the police would issue a notice under Malaysian law, "compelling" him to appear before the investigation team."And if he fails to turn up upon given this notice, then we will go to the next step by getting a warrant of arrest from the court," he told reporters.Eight North Koreans are wanted in connection with the case, including the diplomat. One has been detained by Malaysian police, four are believed to have fled to North Korea, while two others are still in Malaysia.Jong-nam was murdered on Feb 13 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 by VX nerve agent, classified by the United Nations as a weapon of mass destruction, police said on Friday.
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Two women – one Indonesian and one Vietnamese – have also been detained. Police had said on Friday that one of them had suffered from the effects of VX and had been vomiting.
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Abdul Samah also confirmed that authorities raided an apartment in an upscale Kuala Lumpur suburb on Wednesday in connection with the killing.Investigators were still looking for any traces of chemicals in the apartment, he added.An unknown man believed to be from the Foreign Ministry turned up at the North Korean Embassy at 1.10pm to hand over an envelope containing some documents.The man, who wore a sleeveless blue shirt and black cap, was earlier seen loitering around the embassy holding a large envelope but when approached by reporters, he refused to say anything.About 10 minutes earlier, embassy counsellor Kim Yu-song ordered the media to disperse as he said a car would be coming to the embassy to send some documents.However, he refused to say who was sending the documents.Later, Yu-song and another person returned to the embassy gates which remained closed, before they were approached by the individual in blue shirt who handed over an envelope on which the words 'Seri Paduka Baginda' were stamped with the national emblem to the counsellor.Yu-song then signed a piece of paper which bore the words 'Foreign Ministry'. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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