The passengers were waiting to board. An American pilot arrested for triple murder



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Passengers waiting for boarding said the scene looked like that of a movie. (Representation)

Travelers who traveled to the Louisville International Airport in Kentucky to catch their flight said that the scene looked like that of a movie.

The passengers told Fox's affiliate, WDRB, that when they had learned that their pilot had been stopped at the airport early Saturday morning, they had assumed that he had been drinking alcohol at work.

"It was very tense," said a passenger at Frances Wise station. "You could say that employees knew something was happening."

More than three years after the triple homicide committed in a small Kentucky town, Christian Richard Martin, a pilot of an American Airlines subsidiary, was arrested in connection with their deaths, authorities said.

Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear announced Saturday that Martin, 51, was charged with the murders of Calvin and Pamela Phillips and Edward Dansereau, who were found dead in 2015 in Pembroke, Kentucky. Martin, a pilot of PSA Airlines, was arrested at the Louisville International Airport under three counts of murder, as well as arson, burglary and falsification of material evidence.

"There will be several steps from here," Beshear told the press. But, he added, the indictment illustrates what can happen "when you never stop asking for justice, when you never give up a case".

American Airlines said in a statement that she was "deeply saddened" to learn the charges against him, who has been a pilot for PSA Airlines since January 2018. The airline said it had undergone an audit his background and "recurring checks", but there was no "criminal history that could prevent him from being a professional pilot".

After the indictment, American Airlines said that Martin had been put on administrative suspense pending the outcome of the case.

"We have an unwavering commitment to the safety of our clients and members of our team, and we will provide all possible investigations to law enforcement throughout their investigation," the statement said. .

It was not clear immediately if Martin had a lawyer in this case.

In November 2015, Calvin Phillips was found dead from a gunshot wound in his cellar in Pembroke, not far from the Tennessee border, police said. His wife, Pamela, and a neighbor, Dansereau, were found dead in a nearby field inside Pamela's car, which had been burned, according to the Associated Press.

The authorities have not revealed any motive, but the WKDZ-FM radio station reported last year that Calvin Phillips was a potential witness in a previous lawsuit against Martin.

The families of the victims declared in a joint statement that the three had been "brutally extinguished – beyond any recognition by the family".

"Every day, we are haunted by what has been inflicted upon them and by the fear that someone is still free to do so, beyond the civility of humanity or the laws of our nation ", they said in a statement released Saturday by the Attorney General's office. "We are overwhelmed by this positive step in favor of solving the problems we love so much, Cal and Pam Phillips and Ed Dansereau, as well as hundreds of friends, family members, neighbors, colleagues from work and others deeply touched by their brutal end.

"We look forward to justice in court and look forward to the verdict to put an end to this terror and a new beginning for healing."

Beshear said that he had agreed to appoint a special prosecutor two years ago after Phillips' son, Matt, met him and told him that he was worried that he would not be there. investigation of the murder does not advance. Beshear assured family members that "we will do everything in our power to help you".

Saturday morning at the airport, the atmosphere was tense and passengers confused.

Wise's daughter, Ashley Martin (no relation to the suspect), called it "surprising".

"It's scary to think that it happened so long ago, and they're just starting to catch the guy," she told the station.

"I was really stressed," she added. "I had the impression that it was a little chaotic and unorganized.The workers … you could say that they were stressed.You could feel that energy.You could feel the flight attendant voltage. "

Martin, who lives in North Carolina, is currently incarcerated at the Christian County Detention Center in Kentucky, where he is awaiting trial. A test date has not been set.

(With the exception of the title, this story was not changed by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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