Interpol issues warrant for four North Koreans wanted for Kim Jong-nam murder

The law enforcement agency is looking for seven people in total for their alleged involvement in the murder of North Korean leader’s brother

Malaysian police have received a ‘red notice’ from Interpol for four North Koreans that are wanted for the murder of Kim Jong-nam – the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un –  who was killed in a Malaysian airport earlier this month.
“I would like to inform you that we have obtained Interpol red notice for the four North Korean nationals who were at the airport on the day of the incident and who have since left and we believe to be in Pyongyang now,” inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar told reporters on Thursday.
A red notice is the closest thing to an international arrest warrant issued by Interpol, the international law enforcement agency.
The four North Korean citizens wanted for arrest are Rhi Ji-hyon, 33, Hong Song-hac, 34, O Jong-gil, 55, and Ri Jae-nam, 57. They were said to have entered Malaysia separately days before Kim Jong-nam’s killing on 13 Feb and left for Jakarta from Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 just after the assassination.
Malaysian police also want to question three other North Koreans, including a diplomat, for their alleged roles in the murder. Bakar has said he has reason to believe the three are hiding in the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
Kim Jong-nam’s killing on 13 February – in which two women were alleged to have smeared toxic VX nerve agent on his face at a Kuala Lumpur airport – has ignited a diplomatic row between Malaysia and North Korea, who enjoyed close ties in the past. North Korea has raised doubts about Malaysia’s investigations into the murder and refused to confirm that the man killed was Kim Jong-nam.