YouTuber feud sparks deadly stabbing on live stream outside Busan court

A YouTuber died in front of a court in Busan after being stabbed by a fellow YouTuber while live streaming on Thursday morning.

Police officers clean up the scene where a YouTuber was killed after being stabbed by a fellow YouTuber on Thursday morning. [NEWS1]

A YouTuber died in front of a court in Busan after being stabbed by a fellow YouTuber while live streaming on Thursday morning.

The suspect was later caught by police in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, at 11:35 a.m., an hour and 40 minutes after the attack.

According to the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency, police received a report that "a man in his 40s" was stabbed in front of Busan District Court in Yeonje District, southeastern Busan, at 9:52 a.m. Thursday. The attacker immediately fled the scene.

The victim, in his 50s, was found in a state of cardiac arrest and immediately transferred to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Police said the attacker quickly fled the scene in a car.

According to media reports, the two knew each other because they were both YouTubers who uploaded videos about their daily lives.

The two had reportedly been in a legal dispute after insulting and physically assaulting each other for the last three years.

A hearing regarding an assault involving the YouTubers was set to be held at the court at around 11 a.m. following numerous complaints since last July.

Just before the attack, the late YouTuber was streaming live to attend the hearing as a victim. During the live stream, he said he planned to appeal to the court regarding damages and to petition the bench to hand down a heavy punishment on the alleged soon-to-be attacker.

The suspect stabbed the victim across from the courthouse.

Police added that they believe that the crime was premeditated as they found he bought a sharp weapon 30 to 35 centimeters long (11.8 to 13.7 inches) at a supermarket in Busan a day before.

The suspect also rented the car beforehand, according to the police.

Police transferred the suspect to Yeonje Police Precinct and are currently investigating the background and motive of the attack.

BY KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]