O Sang Hon, the deputy public security minister of North Korea, was reportedly executed with a "flamethrower."
One of South Korea's leading newspapers, The Chosun Ilbo, quoted an anonymous source that claimed the execution to be true. However, it has not been verified by Kim Jong Un or his administration.
If true, this would add to the list of chilling state-ordered killings by Kim Jong Un, who infamously executed his uncle, Jang Song Thaek, in December 2013.
According to the South Korean newspaper, Jang's older sister, Kye-sun, her husband, Jon Yong-jin -- North Korea's ambassador to Cuba -- and their son-in-law, Kim Yong-ho, have reportedly been executed as well in an attempt to rid the county of officials who supported Jang.
However, as the Washington Post notes, this would not be the first time international media outlets incorrectly reported an outrageous story on North Korea.
Earlier this year, NBC News reported Kim let 120 starving dogs essentially eat his political rivals alive, earning the story 44,000 likes. Three days later, an NBC report correcting the story received nearly 200.
In March, another story emerged claiming Kim ordered all men in North Korea to have the same haircut as him, which was also false.
