Kim Jong Nam murder: Don't pressure police, forensic unit - Subramaniam

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said today the police and forensic unit should not be subjected to pressure in their investigation into the assassination of Kim Jong Nam, elder half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, on Feb 13.

He said the police and the forensic unit should be given the time and space to conduct their work because they were aware of their responsibility.

"They can't be dictated by either the government or the press to do anything much faster than what they should do ... it is their responsibility to do this.

"In the end, the police are answerable. They need to make sure that they have got the answers and are confident about it," he said.

Dr Subramaniam spoke to reporters when asked to comment on the developments in the forensic investigation into the murder of Jong Nam at the KL International Airport 2 (klia2).

Jong Nam was at klia2 at 8am on Feb 13 to board a flight to Macau an hour later when a woman suddenly covered his face with a cloth laced with what is believed to be poison.

He sought help at a customer service counter at the airport and was rushed to the Putrajaya Hospital but died on the way. He had come to Malaysia on Feb 6 and carried a passport bearing the name Kim Chol.

Police have so far arrested four people - two women, one bearing an Indonesian passport and the other a Vietnamese passport; a Malaysian and a North Korean - over the killing.

Dr Subramaniam said that so far the ministry had not received any information on the forensic autopsy on Jong Nam's body.

Over the week since the assassination of Jong Nam, local and foreign reporters and photographers have continued to gather in front of the Institute of Forensic Medicine at Kuala Lumpur Hospital for news on the autopsy.

As of 10am today, about 30 reporters and photographers were there, some of them even having camped overnight. Reporters and photographers are only allowed to gather in front of the institute, and the area is closely guarded by the police and security guards.

Earlier, Dr Subramaniam launched the Cancerfly Employment Portal and CanBazaar Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL) 2017 managed in cooperation with the HKL Department of Radiotherapy and Oncology.

The www.cancerfly.com is the first employment portal specially to assist cancer patients secure jobs by displaying their products or services for the public.

Portal founder Dr M. Sri Ganesh said cancer patients could generate an income by advertising their products on the portal besides securing jobs which they could do part-time from their homes.

"We appeal to employers in the public and private sector to offer vacant positions to cancer patients because we find that many patients who have recovered are able to work again," he said.

HKL director Datuk Dr Zaininah Mohd Zain was also present at the event. -- BERNAMA