(LEAD) Court issues arrest warrant for ex-co-pilot accused of killing captain

▲ 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)

(LEAD) pilot murder-suspect

(LEAD) Court issues arrest warrant for ex-co-pilot accused of killing captain

(ATTN: UPDATES with warrant issuance in paras 1-2; RECASTS headline)

BUSAN, March 20 (Yonhap) -- A local court on Friday issued an arrest warrant for a former co-pilot accused of killing an airline captain in Busan earlier this week.

The Busan District Court granted the warrant, citing concerns that the suspect, surnamed Kim, could destroy evidence or flee.

The man in his 50s 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 warrant hearing.

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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