IGP: Tattoos not for identification

PETALING JAYA: Bukit Aman has rubbished claims that photos of Kim Jong-nam can be used to identify the body of the murdered North Korean.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said police would not consider using such methods in identifying the body.

Foreign and local media had reported that strong evidence in the form of tattoos on Jong-nam’s body would enable the authorities to establish direct links between him and the body in the Hospital Kuala Lumpur morgue.

“We will not be using photos to identify the body,” said Khalid yesterday, adding that a DNA comparison would be more conclusive.

Although foreign and local press have reported that Jong-nam was murdered, police can only say that the body is that of a North Korean who has a passport in the name of Kim Chol.

The man was murdered on the eve of Valentine’s Day at KLIA2, allegedly with VX nerve agent.

Two women, Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong and Indonesian Siti Aisyah, have been charged with the murder.

North Korea’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Ri Tong-il, claimed “Kim Chol” died of a heart attack.