Kim Jae-gyu

Who was Kim Jae-gyu?

Kim Jae-gyu was a South Korean Army Lieutenant General and the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency. He assassinated South Korean President Park Chung-hee - who had been one of his closest friends - on October 26, 1979. He was subsequently executed by hanging on May 24, 1980. He remains a controversial figure with many contradictions, regarded by some as a patriot who ended Park's 18-year military dictatorship, and by others as Park's henchman who killed his long-time benefactor out of personal grievance. For many years, the latter was the prevailing view, but later revelations in the early 2000s about Kim's relationship with some leaders of the democracy movement prompted a re-evaluation in some circles.