Report: Slain Kim Jong Nam was carrying $120,000 cash

June 12 (UPI) -- The assassinated half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was carrying stacks of cash in a black bag when he was attacked at an airport in Kuala Lumpur.

Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun reported Sunday that Kim Jong Nam, 45, was secretly moving $120,000 of cash with him through Malaysia before two women attacked him on Feb. 13 with a poisonous substance.

North Korean agents in the country may have been tracking Kim's movements and were most likely at the scene of his slaying to guarantee a successful hit, Malaysia authorities said, according to the newspaper.

Authorities also said the money may have been picked up in the country while Kim was visiting, from Feb. 6-13, before his planned return to his home in Macau.

Kim was staying at the resort island of Langkawi, more than 250 miles north of Kuala Lumpur, where he may have met with an American man for about two hours.

The meeting took place on Feb. 9, and the man had ties to U.S. intelligence, according to Malaysia authorities.

"In return for providing information, it is possible Kim Jong Nam received money," one Malaysian official told the Asahi.

There are no records of cash withdrawals from banks in Malaysia, according to the report.

Kim did not need to declare the cash to airport customs, because he was traveling on a North Korean diplomatic passport.

The cash was in denominations of $100, and four bundles of 300 bills were found in the bag.

Kim Jong Nam was the oldest son of former leader Kim Jong Il, who fell out of favor with his father after he attempted to visit Tokyo Disneyland on a fake Dominican Republic passport in 2001.