NKorean leader's son living high life in Macau: report

AFP on Yahoo ^ | 1/31/07 | AFP

[NormsRevenge]

HONG KONG (AFP) - The eldest son of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il has been living the high life in southern China's casino haven Macau for most of the past three years, a media report has said.

Kim Jong-nam, 35, and his family have made their home on the territory's leafy Coloane island, and he has been spotted dining in fine restaurants and gambling in the plush casinos, the South China Morning Post reported here.

He has apparently been living untroubled despite a crackdown by the United States on the tiny city's financial links with the Pyongyang regime.

North Korea is one of the most impoverished and reclusive countries in the world and has relied on food aid for much of the past decade to feed many of its 23 million people.

At the same time it runs a nuclear weapons programme that saw it test its first atomic device last October. Six-nation talks on dismantling that drive are due to resume February 8 in Beijing.

"He's been on the move for much of the decade, but Macau is the place he calls home now," a source told the South China Morning Post.

"He's been free to stay as long as he lives quietly. He believes he is among friends and he appears to be happy."

The report, compiled after a six-week investigation, said that while the young Kim had been living in and out of top hotels in the former Portuguese enclave, his wife and children had been based in a luxury Coloane villa.

It said he travels overseas on Dominican Republic and Portuguese passports.

He had also made regular visits to Hong Kong, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) to the east, but was refused entry on his most recent trip amid international condemnation of October's weapons test, the report added.

His most recent overseas trip took him to Beijing for a health check-up, it added.

Macau's long links with North Korea have been under scrutiny since one of its banks, Banco Delta Asia, was accused of laundering some of the proceeds of Pyongyang's international counterfeit operations.

Some 24 million dollars of the bank's assets were frozen in late 2004 and its management placed under the control of the Macau government following the US Treasury claims.

Reports at the time also linked the cash funnelled through Macau to North Korea's nuclear programme.

"Macau has been trying hard to finally play its part ... the fact that the young Mr Kim has been using the place as his base puts them in a very difficult position," a western diplomatic source was quoted as saying.

The Post report said the Macau government had yet to comment and that the North Korean consulate in Hong Kong knew nothing of Kim's presence in Macau.

[PzLdr]

Living proof that the pigs in "Animal Farm" were more equal.

[SevenofNine]

I think this the kid or one of Chia Pet kid who has female hormones problem HEY TIGER is this kid

[TigerLikesRooster]

Re #22

No, it is the other kid.

[SevenofNine]

See Monk I wasn't sure Tiger has answer ROFL it other kid this brat that got busted at Tokyo Disneyland OH LORDY ROFL

[syriacus]

Here's a picture of grandpa Kim Il-sung, the guy whose troops invaded South Korea 56 years ago.

To help free the South Koreans, 30,000 Americans lost their lives in 30 months. They were sent by President Truman to fight "bandits" in a "police actions"

[rbosque]

Living a decadent life I see! I'm sure his starving countrymen would love to hear about this!

[uncle fenders]

hope this works

[URL=http://imageshack.us][IMG]http://img458.imageshack.us/img458/2818/kimmickoj0.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[IMG]http://img458.imageshack.us/img458/2818/kimmickoj0.jpg[/IMG]

[uncle fenders]

try this again.... [url=http://img463.imageshack.us/my.php?image=kimmickox2.jpg][img=http://img463.imageshack.us/img463/4755/kimmickox2.th.jpg][/url]

[Minutemen]

You gotta be kidding! who would pay ransom to get that pot-bellied pig back?

[razorback-bert]

[uncle fenders]

one last attempt

[SevenofNine]

HEY MONK they messing with your photoshop ROFL

[monkapotamus]

[SevenofNine]

POOR DOGGIE ROFL having Chia Pet son as owner ROFL