A woman charged with killing Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, was told to fly to Macao to perform a "prank" just days before he was fatally attacked with the VX nerve agent in a Malaysian airport, the court heard Thursday.

Gooi Soon Seng, the lawyer for Siti Aisyah, 26, of Indonesia, told the Shah Alam High Court that Hong Song Hac, one of four North Korean men also charged with the murder, gave her 4,000 ringgit (about $1,020) on Feb. 8 last year to buy an airline ticket to Macao the next day, but then called her later that same day to cancel the trip.

Gooi was cross examining the police investigating officer Wan Azirul Nizam, who confirmed certain anecdotal evidence that Gooi produced such as WeChat messages between Aisyah and her friends.

In one conversation between Aisyah and a man known as John, Aisyah told him on Feb. 8, "Tomorrow I go to Macao." John replied, "Go Macao? Work?" Aisyah answered, "Shooting."

Gooi then referred to a phone call log which recorded five missed calls from Hong on Feb. 8. Gooi said when Aisyah finally answered, Hong told her the trip was off.

Gooi also referred to a WeChat log dated Feb. 9, 2017, where Aisyah texted another friend named Farid. In the Malay language, Aisyah wrote, "He said it's canceled." Azirul confirmed the authenticity of all the text messages.

Kim Jong Nam had been living in self-imposed exile in Macao, the Chinese gambling hub, for years after falling out of favor with his father, the late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il. When the elder Kim died, his younger son, Kim Jong Un, succeeded his father, and it is widely speculated that he ordered his brother's assassination to prevent him from usurping his power.

Gooi told reporters outside the courtroom, the Macao trip was canceled because the North Koreans found out Kim Jong Nam had flown into Malaysia last Feb. 6.

"Perhaps that could be the reason. Perhaps they realized that he is no more in Macao," Aisyah's defense lawyer said.

Aisyah and 29-year old Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong are jointly charged, along with four North Koreans who are still at large, with murdering Kim Jong Nam at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport budget terminal on Feb. 13 last year.

The two women have pleaded not guilty and say they were duped by the North Koreans into thinking they were participating in a prank video.

Aisyah was introduced to Hong, 33, at the Phom Penh International Airport by another North Korean named Ri Ji U, 30, on Jan. 21 last year.

At the airport in Cambodia, she was asked to perform three "pranks" and was paid $600 by Hong. The prosecution has described the "pranks" as "practice" for the murder.

From Feb. 3 to Feb. 11 last year, Hong had Aisyah performed four more "pranks" at the main KLIA and budget terminals, where he gave her baby oil to apply on her hands and rub on her victims. She was paid a total of $550.

Thursday's session was the 30th day of the trial which began last Oct. 2. The trial will resume on Feb. 27.