KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian authorities have handled the high profile murder case of Kim Jong-nam professionally, and North Korea must respect this professionalism, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
In response to a North Korean statement that Jong-nam had died from a heart attack, and not after being attacked with VX nerve agent, Zahid said: "I think we have to be professional about it.
"We have checked DNA, forensics, we have done chemistry tests and checked CCTV (footages)," he said in a brief interview at the Malaysian Felda Youth Council annual general meeting, today.
Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was murdered at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 on the morning of Feb 13 in what has been described as an elaborate and high-profile assassination.
His assailants were two foreign women, who were charged with his murder on Wednesday.
Yesterday, Ri Tong Il, North Korea’s former deputy ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters that Jong-nam "probably died of a heart attack because he suffered from heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure."