Doan Thi Huong was released

Reporters waiting outside the prison saw only a van and a car with tinted windows speed past the gate. A court official present confirmed that Huong had been released.

Doan Thi Huong was happy after leaving the court on April 1, knowing that she would be released in May. Photo: AP

On May 2, Mr. Hisyam, one of Huong's three lawyers, said that he would also board the same flight with her to Hanoi on the evening of May 3 and have a meeting with the Vietnam Bar Federation. He also said that Huong "certainly looks forward to going home."

After being released, the Vietnamese citizen was immediately taken to the immigration office in Putrajaya, Malaysia's "administrative capital", to complete some procedures before returning to Vietnam. Lawyer Hisyam said Huong could have a brief meeting with the press before boarding the plane.

"In case she is unable to speak to the media, I will read her statement," he toldReutersmorning of May 3rd

APMaridam Yacfar, Doan Thi Huong's interpreter in court, said Huong looked "very happy" when she was released, but did not give further details.

Doan Thi Huong is the only person convicted in the February 2017 murder of North Korean citizen Kim Chol, believed to be Kim Jong Nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. For more than two years, she has faced charges that could carry the death penalty under Malaysian criminal law.

Huong pleaded guilty to “intentionally causing injury” after a reduced sentence was handed down on April 1. She was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, but her sentence was reduced by a third. She was released on May 3 because her prison sentence was counted from February 2017, when she was arrested at the Kuala Lumpur airport where the North Korean citizen was killed.

Huong was arrested two days after the murder, in which the victim was later confirmed to have died from the nerve agent VX. She and Indonesian defendant Siti Aisyah were charged with murder, but they have always maintained they were duped into taking part in a prank filmed for a reality TV show.

Lawyers for the two women have always said they were scapegoats in a murder allegedly orchestrated by North Korean agents, whom they consider the masterminds. But the agents left Malaysia without being charged.

Defendant Siti Aisyah after being released on March 11. Photo: AP.

The trial of the two women has been ongoing since October 2017. Siti Aisyah was released from court on March 11, after the Malaysian attorney general decided to drop the charges against her.

Following this development, Vietnam has continued to take the highest level of citizen protection measures for Doan Thi Huong. On March 12,Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh had a phone call with Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah. On March 13, Justice Minister Le Thanh Long also sent a letter to Malaysian Attorney General Tommy Thomas.

On the 14th/3, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung met with the Malaysian Ambassador in Hanoi. In tDuring all exchanges, Vietnam requested Malaysia to ensure a fair and objective trial and release Vietnamese citizen Doan Thi Huong.

From Nam Dinh, Mr. Doan Van Thanh, father of Doan Thi Huong, confirmed by phone withZing.vnThe family will be "taken away by the state" from the afternoon of May 3 to pick up their daughter.

"We were preparing to slaughter a pig to celebrate, but our family was poor so we didn't do anything big. We just had a feast to celebrate her return," said Nguyen Thi Vy, Doan Thi Huong's stepmother, over the phone.