Kim Jong-un's guards could face execution after he went out with stains on his clothes.
Kim Jong-un went out with stains on his jacket
The dictator was inspecting a missile launch last week when propaganda pictures captured Kim's jacket covered in white marks.
The incident has sparked fears that Kim's staff could be punished for failing to protect the supreme leader's dignity and North Korea expert Michael Madden isn't ruling out the prospect of execution.
He said: "Personnel who have irritated the supreme leader are usually punished with demotions, hardship assignments or labour education.
"It is unlikely that anyone will get shot over something like this - unless the leader is feeling particularly mercurial.
"But if he got angry about this then a few people will probably get sent to a construction site or a farm for a month or two to think about this minor transgression."
Madden, who runs the North Korea Leadership Watch website, continued: "It is not unheard of to be sent away for execution.
"There are accounts of the leader's father, Kim Jong-il, having bodyguards and members of his personal staff sent to prisons and in one case to the firing squad for very minor offenses.
"One unconfirmed story is that a member of his personal staff sat at his desk and smoked one of his cigarettes. Kim Jong-il discovered this and had that man shot."
However, Madden says that Kim may let the incident slide as he is "far less prone to mood swings" than his late father.