Year after Kim's killing, suspected masterminds evade trial
Posted February 12, 2018 6:00 am
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) - Lost in the glare of North Korea's missile launches, rhetorical battles with Washington and charm offensive at the Winter Olympics, a court is hearing evidence in the stunning assassination of Kim Jong Un's estranged half brother.
The two young Southeast Asian women on trial could be sent to the gallows for a crime they almost certainly had a part in - possibly without knowing it.
But just as certainly, the slaying of Kim Jong Nam one year ago Tuesday required a bigger cast of characters.
People who could plan such a crime, procure a deadly and exotic poison and ensure no one was harmed other than the target in a crowded airport terminal in Malaysia.
And those suspected masterminds are all long gone.
FILE - This combination of file photos shows Kim Jong Nam, left, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in Narita, Japan, on May 4, 2001, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on May 9, 2016, in Pyongyang. Lost in the glare of North Koreaâs missile launches, rhetorical battles with Washington and its charm offensive at the Winter Olympics, two young Southeast Asian women stand accused of a crime that could send them to the gallows, the stunning assassination of Kim Jong Unâs brother. Itâs a crime they almost certainly had a part in, possibly without knowing it. But just as certainly, the slaying a year ago Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018 must have required a bigger cast of characters. And those suspects are long gone. (AP Photos/Shizuo Kambayashi, Wong Maye-E, File)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this March 29, 2017, file photo, North Korea's flag flutters inside North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lost in the glare of North Koreaâs missile launches, rhetorical battles with Washington and its charm offensive at the Winter Olympics, two young Southeast Asian women stand accused of a crime that could send them to the gallows, the stunning assassination of Kim Jong Unâs brother. Itâs a crime they almost certainly had a part in, possibly without knowing it. But just as certainly, the slaying a year ago Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018 must have required a bigger cast of characters. And those suspects are long gone. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, File)
The Associated Press
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