North Korean spy 'vanishes' in China

North Korea has sent investigators to China to search for a North Korean spy stationed in Shenyang who disappeared in February, according to a Japanese report on Monday. / Scene from "Secretly, Greatly"

By Ko Dong-hwan

A North Korean senior spy in China possibly went into hiding in February with the aim of defecting, Tokyo Shimbun reported Monday.

The spy, responsible for collecting intelligence from China and Russia about possible threats to the Kim Jong-un regime, had been staying at a Shenyang hotel in Liaoning Province. He then reportedly disappeared in late February, according to the report, which cited a Beijing correspondent with a North Korean informant.

Pyongyang reportedly knew that the spy, possibly carrying “a large amount of foreign currency,” was in possession of confidential intelligence critical to the regime, which has sent investigators to try to find him in China.

The report said the spy, in his 50s, followed Kim's orders this year to set up an office that tracks down defectors and their supporters. The man reportedly is a descendant of Pyongyang's royal Baekdu lineage.