Suspect defends murder of airline captain as revenge on vested interests

▲ A former co-pilot suspected of killing an airline captain leaves a police station in the southeastern city of Busan on March 20, 2026, to attend an arrest warrant hearing at a court. (Yonhap)

pilot murder-suspect

Suspect defends murder of airline captain as revenge on vested interests

BUSAN, March 20 (Yonhap) -- A former co-pilot apprehended for allegedly killing an airline captain in Busan earlier this week justified his crime as revenge against vested interests before attending an arrest warrant hearing at a court Friday.

The man in his 50s, surnamed Kim, was taken into custody Tuesday evening after fatally stabbing the captain at his home in the southeastern city of Busan early that morning.

He is also accused of unsuccessfully attempting to strangle another airline captain to death in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, on Monday. They are all alumni of the Air Force Academy and were colleagues at the same airline.

"I took revenge on the thuggish behavior of the organized vested interests," the suspect told reporters before leaving a Busan police station to attend the arrest warrant hearing at the Busan District Court.

He went on to claim that the vested interests of the Air Force Academy have been committing massive acts of corruption at every airline.

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