ChinaÂ’s security police arrested a close aide to North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il in Macau earlier this month apparently on suspicion of money laundering. Kang Sang-Choon, Kim's chief of staff, was detained on Jan. 11 in connection with circulating forged U.S. currency and money laundering, reported the DailyNK, citing Japanese diplomatic sources.
Must have been in a cash flow bind. I would think that flunkies would be doing the heavy laundering.
The arrest appears to have been the result of close cooperation between Macao Chinese authorities and U.S. undercover agents with the Treasury Department and the CIA working together.
Now there's a coalition!
Kang, 66, is a deputy chief of the Workers' Party organization and guidance department, one of the North's most powerful offices. He is also in charge of managing Kim Jong-Il's private funds and private necessities, according to North Korean defectors.
Ohhhh...big fish in a Macau rainbarrel.
The arrest took place while Kim was making an official visit to China. The news of the arrest did not surface, however, while North Korean leader Kim Jong Il was visiting southeastern China, including Shenzhen, just above Hong Kong, and Guangchou, and it's believed Chinese authorities did not brief him on what was going on at the time.
They were busy getting anthracite and uranium mining agreements before they popped the news to Kimmie.
The arrest, however, intensifies the pressure on Kim either to call a halt to the counterfeiting or to move ever closer to China, with which he and his top economic officials made a deal for trade, aid and investment while in Beijing.
Oh, the pressures of state....
"Although the background for arrest is under verification, considering the timing of his arrest, it is presumed that the arrest may be connected to the counterfeit money and money laundering through Macao Bank," a source was quoted as saying.
Insert Master of the Obvious pic here.The South Korean spy agency said it had some information about Kang's arrest, but refused to reveal details, saying they were in the process of verifying the information.
"We can say no more™!"
But a government official said the arrest by the Chinese security police might indicate Beijing's willingness to crack down on North Korea's illicit financial activities through banks in Macau, possibly under U.S. pressure.
The U.S. Treasury in September forbade American banks from doing business with a Macau-based Chinese bank, Banco Delta Asia, accusing it of laundering money for North Korea and abetting other illicit activities such as counterfeiting and smuggling. Banco Delta Asia has cut off transactions with North Korea, which is believed to have hindered Pyongyang's cash flow and had a devastating effect on the economy, which reportedly relies on illicit activities for at least 40 percent of its gross domestic product.
Slowly tightening the screws on all fronts. Now if SKor can keep from enabling Norks, the regime could fall, or be replaced with something with a bit of humanity.