The official said before the execution, Yong-Jin first faced an investigation because of the way he was seated during a June meeting attended by the Leader Kim Jong Un. “He incurred the wrath of Kim after he dozed off during a meeting that Kim presided over”, the newspaper quoted the source as saying.
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Jeong said Kim was in charge of education affairs, but refused to disclose why and when South Korea believes he was executed.
The report could be seen as “a new reign of terror” in North Korea sparked by a number of defections by senior officials, the newspaper said.
If confirmed, Kim Yong Jin’s death would be the latest in a wave of punishments, including executions, ordered by Kim Jong Un since he took power in 2011.
The JoongAng Ilbo identified the murdered officials as former agriculture minister Hwang Min and senior education ministry official Ri Yong Jin.
“Kim Yong-jin was denounced for his bad sitting posture when he was sitting below the rostrum”, the official told reporters, adding that it happened during a session of North Korea’s Parliament. The report said he was arrested on site and later executed after a probe uncovered corruption and other malfeasance.
Perhaps the most well-known example was the 2013 execution of Jang Song-thaek, Kim’s uncle and second in command.
The announcement came one day after South Korean media outlet the JoongAng Ilbo reported the execution of two unspecified high-ranking officials.
Kim Yong-Chol is a military intelligence official who is infamous for the rumor of being the mastermind behind the frequent cyber-attacks from the North against Seoul.
In July a year ago, South Korean officials said Kim had executed about 70 officials since taking power in late 2011. In January last year he executed General Pyon In-son, head of operations in the army, for disagreeing with him; and in May of that year he purged his defence minister Hyon Yong-chol for dozing off at a rally.
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“Kim is continuing to replace the old guard of his father’s regime with loyalists”, said Robert Kelly, a political science professor at South Korea’s Pusan National University, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday.
