The elder half-brother and supposed rival of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been spotted in Malaysia.
Kim Jong-nam was said to have left his Singapore home earlier this month and was recently seen in a Korean restaurant in Kuala Lumpur.
When his father Kim Jong-il was still alive, Kim Jong-nam was observed going back and forth between Beijing and Macau, and even visited Austria and Russia. After the former leader’s death, he ‘disappeared’ and was rumoured to have moved to Southeast Asia.
Rumour also has it that Kim Jong-nam was the victim of an assassination attempt in Macau about three years ago, which might’ve been what had prompted him to move to Southeast Asia.
Singapore and Malaysia are known to house several North Korean businesses, which the recently executed Jang Sung-taek’s nephew Jang Yong-chol was keeping tabs on before he was recalled to Pyongyang last December due to his close relationship with his uncle. Jang seemed to have been taking care of Kim Jong-nam since he was appointed North Korea’s ambassador to Malaysia in 2010, sending him money.
Photo: AFP
Source: The Chosun Ilbo
