Two years after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother was killed, a Malaysian court on Monday dropped the murder charge against the only suspect still in custody, and she pleaded guilty to a lesser offense and was expected to be released soon.
Kim Jong Nam, shown in May 2001, was the exiled half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Malaysian officials have never officially accused North Korea and have made it clear they don't want the trial politicized. High Court Judge Azmi Ariffin sentenced Huong to three years and four months in prison from the day she was arrested on Feb. 15, 2017. Huong's lawyer Hisyam Teh Poh Teik said his client was expected to be freed by the first week of May, after a one-third reduction in her sentence for good behavior.
The move follows the Malaysian attorney general's decision to drop the murder case against Aisyah on March 11 following high-level lobbying from Indonesia's government. Huong sought to be acquitted after Aisyah was freed, but prosecutors rejected her request. Huong's lawyer told the court Monday that her guilty plea to the lesser charge showed she had"taken responsibility" for her actions. In asking for a lenient sentence, he also told the court that her move saved judicial time.
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