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Police nab suspect behind airline pilot murder in Busan

Published: 18 Mar. 2026, 12:16

A suspect in the airline pilot murder case in Busan is seen in front of the Busan Jin Police Precinct in Busan on March 17. [NEWS1]

Police have apprehended a man on suspicion of fatally stabbing an airline pilot in Busan, sources said Wednesday.

The man in his 50s, surnamed Kim, was taken into custody Tuesday evening after allegedly murdering the victim, a former colleague, early that morning at an apartment in Busan.

The suspect, who has been identified as a former airline pilot, has said he began planning the crime three years earlier and sought to kill four people, according to police.

Shortly after the murder, Kim visited another former colleague's home in Changwon, South Gyeongsang, to allegedly carry out another attack, but the attempt failed.

He is also accused of attempting to strangle and kill another former pilot colleague on Monday in Goyang, Gyeonggi, before fleeing the scene.

The suspect is said to have fallen out with his former colleagues when he lost his job two years earlier.

Yonhap