The uncle of Kim-Jong-un was killed after being hunted down by dogs and stripped in a cruel execution.
A Chinese state-backed newspaper claimed that Jang Song-thaek was killed and fed to 120 hounds that had been starved for a total of three days, before devouring his human flesh in 2013.
Jang was once described by the state as "despicable human scum, worse than a dog".
Further reports suggest officials watched as the dogs tore into their meal, while eight of Jang's close allies were also executed by the state.
The North Korean leader is known for his brutal dictatorship - in which any dissent against the regime is likely to be met with a brutal crackdown from the country's security forces.
The purge was reportedly the removal of "factionalist filth" in the communist state, according to Kim Jong-un.
Jang, who is said to have fainted during the ordeal, was at the time considered the North's most powerful figure.
His death was seen as Kim Jong-un ensuring his power after the passing of his father in 2011.
Ra Jong-yil, the author of a biography of Jang titled Son-in-Law of a Theocracy, said: "With his execution, North Korea lost virtually the only person there who could have helped the country introduce reform and openness."
Jang is reported to have indulged in a "pleasure squad", in which young women would sing American songs and do stripteases.
After Jang's grisly end, a feared North Korean general known as the "Angel of Death" is believed to have taken his place.
North Korea expert Michael Madden said of Jo Kyong-chol: "We can link him overall to supervising the process whereby top North Korean military officers and party cadres are incarcerated and executed."
Some believed the reports emerged in Chinese state media because the country's leadership was displeased with the North Korean regime.
The two countries have previously been described as "bitter allies".
More recently, a report by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission into relations between the two found Beijing has "taken steps to maintain its influence over North Korea".
The China-North Korea Strategic Rift: Background and Implications for the United States report said: "China remains invested in ensuring North Korea’s economic dependence."
Despite this, the report also said that the two countries at times maintained frosty relations, with North Korea keen to avoid major decisions being influenced by China.
It read: "Pyongyang has continued to maintain some distance from Beijing, maintaining tight control over its border with China and rejecting Chinese offers of novel [Covid] vaccines."
