KUALA LUMPUR, March 23 — Following the severing of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and North Korea, several places of interest, such as the country’s former embassy premises, will remain under police watch.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador said instructions have been relayed to respective state chief police officers (CPO) and Bukit Aman department directors to continue monitoring exercises to ensure there are no unwanted risks.
Abdul Hamid however did not elaborate on what he meant as potential risks.
“I have reminded all the CPOs and department directors to continue monitoring the situation, and to also increase the surveillance in sensitive areas, to ensure that there are no risks involved,” he said.
The country’s top cop revealed that matters involving North Korea are always handled with extra care, as there have been many questionable incidents locally and abroad that were linked to the country.
This after North Korea decided sever diplomatic relations with Malaysia after a court ruled that a North Korean man could be extradited to the United States to face money-laundering charges.
Its diplomats here were seen shuttering embassy premises and lowering the country’s flag at their office in Damansara Heights on Sunday, after they were given only 48-hours to leave the country following the severing of ties.
Abdul Hamid today pointed out that the series of events which led to the extradition of the North Korean being allowed was not done out of spite, but merely the law taking its due course.
“What happened was not because we are looking to make them our enemies,” he said, referring to the diplomatic incident.
“When they decided to get angry over the extradition, they must always remember that there are laws involved, and we were not acting just based on our whims and fancies.
“If they are unhappy, maybe they can take it up with other authorities like the United Nations or such,” he said, referring to the republic.
Another case in recent memory involving the hermit nation was the murder Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un at klia2 in February 2017.
An autopsy later revealed that Jong-nam died after exposure to the VX nerve agent which was smothered across his face by two foreign women who were told they were being part of a prank television show.
Diplomatic ties between Malaysia and North Korea has remained thorny since Jong-nam’s murder, with Jong-un denying any involvement, while international crime intelligence investigators blamed Pyongyang for orchestrating the murder.
A month following the murder in March, the ambassador of North Korea to Malaysia, Kang Chol, was deemed a persona non grata and was asked to leave the country within 48 hours, the final straw after he condemned Malaysia for refusing to release the body of Kim Jong-nam, and alleging Malaysia was colluding against them with outside forces.
