Lawyer presents evidence to defend suspect in Kim Jong-nam case
(Baonghean.vn) - On January 30, Siti Aisyah's lawyer said that Aisyah was hired by a person on the police's wanted list more than a month ago to participate in a prank on television.
Responding to questions from the police officer leading the investigation, Aisyah's lawyer Gooi Soon Seng said that on January 5 last year, a Malaysian taxi driver approached Aisyah at a nightclub and asked her to participate in a Japanese prank.
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| Indonesian suspect Siti Aisyah. Photo: AP |
The next morning, the taxi driver, Kamaruddin Masiod, known as John, introduced Siti Aisyah to Ri Ji U, a North Korean man who claimed to be Japanese and called James, at a shopping mall in downtown Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
After Aisyah agreed, the suspect watched the pranks performed by an unidentified woman before joining in. Gooi said the woman performed the prank on three people near a water tap outside the entrance to the mall and was paid 400 ringgit ($102.70) by Ri later that day.
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| Vietnamese suspect Doan Thi Huong. Photo: AP |
However, investigator Wan Azirul, who testified at the trial, could not confirm the time and location of the prank. According to Gooi, the meeting between Aisiyah, Ri and Kamaruddin was photographed at the shopping mall. The photo was released to the press after the trial on January 30.
Defense lawyers argued that Mr. Kim’s murder was entirely politically motivated, with the main suspects having ties to the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, and suggested that the two female suspects were merely “pawns” in the attack.
The trial is expected to resume on February 8./.
