Ri Jong Chol, 47, was arrested on Friday night in a raid at a condominium in Jalan Kuchai Lama, Kuala Lumpur. He is one of four male suspects wanted for the murder of Jong Nam, who is the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The suspect, who lives with his wife and daughter in Block B of the Dynasty Garden condominium, kept to himself, a neighbour told the daily.
The sudden police presence in the block caused some anxiety among the residents, more so when loud screams were heard from one of the units, said a neighbour who did not wish to be identified.
Residents in neighbouring units to that raided by the police rushed out upon hearing the screams but were warned by plain clothes police personnel to stay inside their units and close the doors.
“I first thought police were conducting a raid on illegal immigrants but later learned that they were conducting a search for the murder suspect of Kim Jong Nam,” the man was quoted as saying by the daily.
According to him, Ri and his family moved into the condominium about a year ago, but that only the wife and teenage daughter seemed to be around more often than the suspect.
“I have seen them coming out of their condo during lunch hour but have not spoken to them.
“He is a very low profile man and we have never said hello to each other,” the neighbour told The Star, adding that they shared the elevator several times.
Police were reported as saying last week that two women and four men were the prime suspects in the murder of Kim Jong Nam which took place at klia2, Malaysia’s low-cost carrier airport.
It was reported earlier today that the three other male suspects may have fled the country on a flight from the same airport immediately after the attack on Jong Nam.
On Wednesday, police had arrested a woman who held a Vietnamese passport, bearing the name Doan Thi Huong, after she went back to the same airport to board a flight to Vietnam.
Then, on early Thursday morning, the police raided a room at a hotel in Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, to arrest the second woman. She was carrying an Indonesian passport which stated her name as Siti Aisyah, and that she was from the town of Serang, in a province which neighbours Jakarta.
Both the women were identified based on CCTV footage which was taken from the klia2 terminal on the day of the incident.
The third suspect in police custody is a Malaysian in his twenties and is said to be Siti Aisyah’s boyfriend.
With the latest arrest, three more men are still on the loose.
Kim Jong Nam, who is the eldest son of former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, arrived in Malaysia on Feb 6, and was scheduled to board a 9am flight to Macau from klia2 on Monday.
While at klia2, he was approached by a woman who sprayed him with a liquid, while another woman held a cloth over his face.
He asked for help at the klia2 service counter but died on the way to the hospital.