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Female 'assassins' arrested over Kim Jong-nam death thought it was a 'TV show prank'

The two alleged assassins arrested over the nerve gas killing of Kim Jong-nam told police they thought they were taking part in a reality TV show prank, and that the liquid they were given was baby oil, not poison.

The Indonesian suspect in the assassination said she was duped into committing the act, believing it was a prank for a TV show. Siti Aishah told authorities she was paid RM400 (A$117) for her activities.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar had said that Aishah and the Vietnamese suspect Doan Thi Huong knew that they were handling poison during the assassination at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 on February 13.

The estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was killed at Kuala Lumpur international airport using VX nerve agent, Malaysian police say.

Kim Jong Nam, exiled half-brother of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, in Narita, Japan. Photo: AP
Kim Jong Nam, exiled half-brother of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, in Narita, Japan. Photo: AP

However, Indonesian deputy ambassador to Malaysia, Andreano Erwin told reporters Aishah thought it was a prank, someone had asked her to do it and she didn’t know what would happen next.

"She didn't know that it was poison. That is the answer from her.

"She mentioned some names, but I did not recognise them. The names were very general... James, Jang, that's it," he said.

On the people who approached Aishah, asking her to take part in the mission, Andreano said she answered: "They were maybe Japanese or Korean".

Aishah also said that she did not know any Vietnamese person, he added.

According to Andreano, Aishah said she thought the liquid given to her was baby oil.

He added that Aishah is physically healthy and was able to answer all of their questions.

Siti Aishah claimed she thought she was given baby oil, not poison. Photo: Reuters
Siti Aishah claimed she thought she was given baby oil, not poison. Photo: Reuters

"We did not see any effects of the poison. Emotionally, we do not know, will need more checks for that," he said.

He added that they have also collected her fingerprints to confirm that she is the owner of the passport she was carrying.

"The data has been sent to Indonesia via satellite. Hopefully, in one day, we will get the match," he said.

Doan Thi Huong claims she thought she was starring in a comedy video. Photo: Reuters
Doan Thi Huong claims she thought she was starring in a comedy video. Photo: Reuters

Reuters reports Doan Thi Huong also thought she was taking part in a prank video, according to Vietnam's foreign ministry.

Hanoi had not previously confirmed that Doan Thi Huong was Vietnamese, saying only that it was in touch with authorities in Malaysia, where Kim Jong Nam was murdered. Vietnamese embassy officials met her on Saturday.

"During the meeting with embassy officials, Doan Thi Huong said she was being taken advantage of and thought she was starring in a comedy video," the foreign ministry statement said.

Report from Yahoo Singapore and Reuters