Background and career
Kim Jae-gyu (Korean: 김재규, April 9, 1924 – May 24, 1980) was a South Korean politician, army lieutenant general and director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency. He assassinated South Korean President Park Chung Hee on October 26, 1979, and was executed by hanging on May 24, 1980.
He remains a controversial figure with many contradictions: he is regarded by some as a patriot who ended Park's 18-year military dictatorship, and by others as a traitor who killed his longtime 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 reevaluation in some circles.
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