THE MURDER

he can literally get away with murder.” The strangest theory about the assassination comes from Brad Glosserman, executive director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in the US.

He believes China removed Jongnam’s protection and allowed the assassination as a secret symbol of support to Pyongyang.

“This is proof they are not really out there to overthrow the regime,” he claimed.

Aisyah and Huong face the death penalty if convicted of the murder. They insist they are innocent victims of a cruel trick.

But Malaysian prosecutors say they were part of a plot by Jong-un to kill his brother, recruited by four agents who came to Malaysia days before the killing and then fled home to North Korea. Three other North Koreans, including a diplomat and a scientist, have also been implicated.

Forensic and chemical weapons experts said that VX had been found on Aisyah and Huong’s clothes while traces of the poison were also found under Huong’s fingernails.

Other scientific evidence presented in court suggests Jong-nam may have been poisoned by means other than the contaminated face cloth as traces of VX were found not just on his face and eyes but also in his blood, urine and on his clothing and luggage.

North Korea denies any involvement in the killing and insists the dead man is not Kim Jong-nam but Kim Choi – the name on his false passport.