Malaysian prosecutors rest case in Kim Jong Nam murder trial

Indonesian Siti Aisyah, top left, and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, bottom right, escorted by police as they leave after a court hearing at Shah Alam High Court in Shah Alam, Malaysia, Thursday, April 5, 2018. Doan and Aisyah have pleaded have pleaded not guilty of killing Kim Jong Nam, the estranged brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, on Feb. 13, 2017, at a crowded Kuala Lumpur airport terminal. (AP Photo/Sadiq Asyraf)

SHAH ALAM, Malaysia — Malaysian prosecutors have wrapped up their case against two Southeast Asian women accused of killing the estranged half-brother of North Korea’s leader.

Prosecutors told the High Court on Thursday that they were resting their case after questioning 34 witnesses during the six-month trial that could send the women to the gallows.

The judge set three days from June 27 for prosecutors and defense lawyers to make their closing arguments.

The women are 25-year-old Siti Aisyah of Indonesia and 29-year-old Doan Thi Huong of Vietnam. They are accused of smearing VX nerve agent on Kim Jong Nam’s face at Kuala Lumpur’s airport on Feb. 13, 2017. The two are the only suspects in custody. Prosecutors say four North Koreans who had fled the country were also involved.     /muf