Vietnamese woman escapes death charge

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April 2, 2019

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Vietnamese woman escapes death charge

Source: Agencies | 00:00 UTC+8 April 2, 2019 |

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A Vietnamese woman accused of killing the half-brother of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea leader Kim Jong Un escaped the death penalty yesterday, after Malaysian prosecutors dropped a murder charge against her.

Doan Thi Huong, 30, was offered an alternative charge of causing harm, which she pleaded guilty to. A judge sentenced her to more than three years in prison, though her lawyers said she could walk free as early as next month.

Doan and an Indonesian woman, Siti Aisyah, were charged with killing Kim Jong Nam by smearing his face with VX poison, a lethal chemical weapon, at Kuala Lumpur’s main airport in February 2017. Aisyah walked free last month after prosecutors dropped charges against her.

Prosecutors offered Doan an alternative charge of “causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means.” The reduced charge was offered after receiving representations from the Vietnamese embassy and the woman’s lawyers.

Judge Azmi Ariffin sentenced Doan to three years and four months in prison for the reduced charged, adding that Doan was “a very, very lucky person indeed.”

Vietnamese officials in court broke into applause after the ruling. Wearing a red baju kurung, a traditional Malay dress, and a headscarf, Doan stood and nodded as the judge delivered the sentencing. She later told reporters she would like to pursue singing and acting after she’s freed. “I’m very happy. I want to sing and act,” she said.

Before her arrest, Doan was working at an entertainment outlet, Malaysian police have said. A woman bearing a close resemblance to Doan sang on the “Vietnam Idol” talent show in June 2016.

Speaking from her family home in the Red River delta, 130 kilometers from Hanoi, Doan’s stepmother Nguyen Thi Vy said the family was most worried about the death penalty.

“No death penalty is good enough for now,” said Nguyen.

Doan, who has already served two years in jail, could be released by May 4 as Malaysia allows one-third remission off all prison sentences.

Her lawyer Hisyam Teh said Doan had been “naive and gullible” but was not a criminal. Defense lawyers have maintained the women were pawns in an assassination.

The women said they thought they were part of a reality prank show and did not know they were poisoning Kim.

Kim Jong Nam was living in exile in Macau before the killing.

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Vietnamese woman escapes death charge

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