A pilot was arrested and charged Saturday in the murders of a Kentucky couple, as well as a neighbor. Christian Richard Martin, 51, who works for a subsidiary of American Airlines, was detained as he prepared for takeoff, a moment described by a passenger as something like out of a movie. According to the passenger, they were boarding the early-morning flight from Louisville to Charlotte, North Carolina, when police officers escorted their uniformed pilot off the plane in handcuffs. A short while later, they were told the flight had been canceled. Martin, a former Army Ranger major, is accused of killing Calvin Phillips; his wife, Pamela Phillips; and Edward Dansereau in 2015. Pamela and Dansereau were found dead inside a burned-out car several miles away from where Calvin's body was discovered at his home in Pembroke, Kentucky. Calvin had been scheduled to testify against Martin in a military court martial when he was killed. Martin was found guilty of assaulting his wife at his court martial but was acquitted of the more serious charge of sexual assault. He joined the American subsidiary PSA Airlines last year. Inside Edition spoke to Matt Phillips about his parents' deaths. "My folks were wonderful, wonderful people and I miss them terribly," said Matt. "This is devastating to a family." "Pilots undergo a criminal background check and recurrent vetting," an American Airlines statement read. "Martin did not have any criminal history that would disqualify him from being a commercial pilot." Martin is suspended pending the investigation. In an interview in 2016, Martin, who'd been a suspect in the crimes from the start, denied any knowledge of the murders. "I don't know why anybody would want to do something to them," said Martin. For his part, Matt is eagerly anticipating seeing Martin at trial. "I'm very much looking forward to seeing this trial convey exactly who he is and have him defend his actions," said Matt. "I don't think it's going to go well for him." RELATED STORIES<doc-sep>The airline pilot arrested over the weekend and accused of killing three people in Kentucky in 2015 had said in an interview months later that he had no motive for the murders since one of his alleged victims was his "star defense witness" in a sexual assault court-martial he was facing. PSA Airlines pilot Christian Richard Martin, 51, was arrested Saturday at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport and charged with three counts of murder, one of arson, one of attempted arson, burglary in the first degree and three counts of tampering with physical evidence. He is accused of murdering his neighbors, married couple Calvin and Pamela Phillips, and Edward Dansereau. Calvin Phillips was found fatally shot at his home in Pembroke, Kentucky, Attorney General Andy Beshear said Saturday. The bodies of Pamela Phillips and Dansereau were found in Calvin Phillips' car, which had been set on fire in a cornfield a few miles away from the couple's home, he said. Calvin and Pamela Phillips were murdered in 2015. Courtesy of Matthew Phillips Following the murders, Martin, who goes by "Kit" and served in the Army from 1986 to 2016, was grilled by military investigators, and his house was raided by a SWAT team, according to NBC affiliate WSMV. He was eventually released and later moved to North Carolina. In April of 2016, he was interviewed by WSMV, and said he had no concern he would be held responsible for the murders because he actually needed Calvin Phillips to testify for him in an upcoming court-martial he was facing in which his ex-wife, Joan Harmon, had accused him of physical and sexual abuse and mishandling classified military materials. The court-martial found Martin guilty of two counts of mishandling classified information and assault on a child under the age of 16, an Army statement said. He was punitively dismissed from the Army, forfeited all pay and allowances and was sentenced to be confined for 90 days. Martin had served in the Army Reserve from 1986 to 1990, on active duty from 1990 to 1993, in the Army National Guard from 1993 to 2005 and on active duty again from 2005 until he was dismissed in August 2016. Martin said in the April 2016 interview with WSMV that he suspected Harmon had been involved in a long-term affair with Calvin Phillips. "Everyone in town knew what was going on while I was at work every day," Martin said. "They were together all day long, and they didn’t really try to hide it or anything like that." But Martin said he wasn't jealous. In fact, he was grateful to Phillips. Martin and Harmon had their marriage voided about three years before the November 2015 murders, after he had learned Harmon was actually married to another man. "I just call her the ex-bigamist," Martin said in the 2016 interview. Phillips "had gotten me out of this huge mess. I had moved on." When Martin and Harmon split, she had promised him "I will ruin your career, I will ruin your life, I know how to do it," he said. She then accused him of rape, sodomy, child abuse, child molestation, and stealing a military computer, Martin said. Harmon also "went to the FBI and told them I was an international spy, which is, I know, crazy," Martin said, adding that Phillips had accompanied her to make that accusation. "I think his motivation was if I get this guy out of the picture, then I can keep this mistress across the street," Martin said. Several attempts to reach Harmon for comment were unsuccessful. Harmon told WSMV in 2016 that she never had an affair with Phillips, and while she admitted to pleading guilty to bigamy, she did so because she couldn’t afford an attorney. Before he was found guilty in his court-martial, Martin had hired private investigators to help him build a defense. They interviewed Phillips, who said he thought Martin had stolen an Army laptop, according to Martin and tapes of the interviews obtained by WSMV. Phillips said he found the computer when he was helping Harmon clear her stuff out of Martin's house. But Phillips also told investigators that Harmon had never said she or her children were abused by Martin. He was scheduled to testify before the court-martial for both Martin and the military, according to WSMV. Martin said he considered Phillips an asset in his case. "He was my star defense witness," he said. "My private investigator went through all the allegations with him ... and just went down the whole line and just refuted everything. And I was like, I’m golden." Christian Richard Martin Christian County Detention Center "And the other thing he had done for me was he had gotten me out of this bigamist relationship. This woman had basically been milking me for eight years, and I didn’t know it. And so I owed him for that really," Martin said in the interview. The family of Calvin and Pamela Phillips have long contested that Martin didn't have a motive to kill the couple. "I think that notion of this star witness thing is absurd,” Calvin Phillip's sister, Diana Phillips, told WSMV in 2017. "My parents died for this court-martial," the Phillips' son, Matt Phillips, said Monday. "My father was a federal witness. This was an attack not only on my family but on the entire justice system," he said. Christian Martin was arrested at Louisville Airport in connection to a 2015 triple murder case. Courtesy of Tucker Richardson When asked by WSMV in April 2016 who would have killed the Phillips and Dansereau, Martin suggested Phillips had dealings in a brothel and had been using drugs. "He was passed out in the road, OD’d like a couple months before the murders too," Martin said. "If I had wanted to kill him, that would have been a great time to do it, you know, I could’ve just run him over. He was just sitting out there," Martin told WSMV. No evidence has been presented to support Martin's claims.<doc-sep>"Every day, we are haunted by what was done to them and haunted further that someone was still free to do as they wish, beyond the civility of mankind or laws of our nation,” they said in the statement, which was released Saturday by the state attorney general’s office. “We are overwhelmed with this positive step towards resolution for people we love dearly; Cal and Pam Phillips and Ed Dansereau, and the hundreds of friends, family, neighbors, co-workers and others deeply affected by their brutal end.<doc-sep>A 2015 triple murder case in Western Kentucky garnered national attention over the weekend when a pilot was arrested at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. Christian "Kit" Richard Martin, a pilot for American Airlines subsidiary PSA Airlines, was arrested early Saturday at the Louisville airport by authorities with the U.S. Marshal's Service, Christian County Sheriff's Office and Louisville Metro Police. Here's what we know about Martin's arrest and the 2015 murder case: Who was murdered? Martin, 51, is accused of killing Calvin and Pamela Phillips and Edward Dansereau in Christian County. Calvin Phillips, 59, was found shot to death Nov. 18, 2015, in his home in Pembroke. The bodies of his 58-year-old wife, Pamela Phillips, and the couple's 63-year-old neighbor, Dansereau, were found a few miles away in a corn field inside a burned car owned by Pamela Phillips. Martin was indicted by a Christian County grand jury on three counts of murder, one count of arson, one count of attempted arson, two counts of burglary in the first degree and three counts of tampering with physical evidence. According to the indictment, Martin allegedly broke into the Phillips' home, shot and killed the three victims and then put the bodies of Pamela Phillips and Dansereau into a car. He then set the car on fire in the field, according to the indictment. How did Martin come to be charged? Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear announced the indictment Saturday, a day after the grand jury's decision. He said the indictment came nearly two years after he said he met with Calvin and Pamela Phillips' son, who was worried the case had stalled. After that meeting, Beshear accepted a request from the local commonwealth's attorney to appoint a special prosecutor from his office to handle the case. More:Pilot accused of triple murder in Western Kentucky arrested at Louisville airport “I hope this is a day that brings some justice to these families,” Beshear said. “There are many steps from here, but we hope this is one example of when you never stop seeking justice, when you never give up, that we can truly get important results for these families.” This case was investigated cooperatively by the Kentucky State Police and the Christian County Sheriff’s Office, Beshear said. The indictment had been sealed until Martin was arrested. He was booked Saturday in the Christian County Detention Center, still wearing what appears to be his pilot's uniform. Beshear has declined to explain what helped investigators crack the case, saying he couldn’t comment on evidence. Did Martin know the murder victims? Martin and the Phillips' family were neighbors in Pembroke. Martin said he knew the couple since moving to the area in 2011 but that they hadn't spoken in years. But Martin and Calvin Phillips were also linked through a complicated court-martial case at Fort Campbell in Kentucky. Calvin Phillips had been scheduled to testify in December 2015 in the case, in which Martin, then an Army major, was accused of sexual assault charges involving several juvenile witnesses. But Phillips and the others were murdered the previous month. Martin was briefly taken into custody, but no charges were filed against him in relation to the triple homicide. In May 2016, the Leaf-Chronicle in Clarksville, Tennessee, reported that Martin had been acquitted of the sexual assault charges, which arose after several juvenile witnesses accused him of physical and sexual abuse dating back to 2008. But Martin, who had served in the Army for almost 30 years, was found guilty by the court-martial on lesser charges of two counts of mishandling classified information and two counts of simple assault. The prosecutor said Martin had downloaded classified military information, such as emails and a kill list, to his personal laptop while stationed in the Middle East and later took it with him to Germany, Rhode Island and ultimately, his home in Pembroke. Martin's ex-wife made the allegations of mishandling classified information. He was dismissed from the Army. Martin's lawyer at the time told the New York Times he was also sentenced to 90 days in prison. Martin also told a Nashville television station in a 2016 interview that Calvin Phillips was his "star witness." But Calvin Phillips' son, Matt Phillips, told CNN his father had evidence that was harmful to Martin’s case in military court. Martin's attorney, Michael Thompson, told the New York Times that Calvin Phillips' testimony would have helped Martin and that Phillips was expected to be a witness for both the defense and the prosecution. “There’s no motive,” Thompson said. “That’s the wrong information out there.” Martin also told Nashville television station WSMV he thought his ex-wife was his wife until he learned she was already married to someone else. In another twist, he said his ex-wife also had an affair with Calvin Phillips. What has Martin said about the murders? Of the day of the slayings, Martin told a reporter he only recalled the barking of a dog in the middle of the night. "I don't know why anybody would want to do something to them," Martin reportedly said. According to Beshear's office, Martin moved out of Christian County after the alleged murders and was living in North Carolina at the time of the indictment. Martin has a Raleigh, North Carolina, address, according to online records. How was he arrested at the airport? Natalie Chaudoin, spokeswoman for the Louisville Regional Airport Authority, said Martin was arrested around 6:30 a.m. Saturday at a security checkpoint. Beshear said the arrest ensured “there was an environment where it could be done safely for everyone involved.” Contrary to some media reports, Beshear said, Martin was not dragged off a plane. Martin was arrested about an hour before Flight 5523 was set to depart for Charlotte with him at the controls. Martin has been suspended by PSA Airlines pending the investigation, a spokeswoman said. He has worked there since January 2018. Is he involved in 'men's rights' groups? Several groups dedicated to supporting men's rights took interest in Martin's court-martial and published stories in his defense.<doc-sep>
On Saturday, startled passengers watched as U.S. Marshals boarded their plane in Louisville and took their pilot in custody on murder charges A pilot for an American Airlines subsidiary accused of murdering three of his neighbors in 2015 was arrested in Kentucky moments before takeoff Saturday on a plane filled with passengers. U.S. Marshals and police boarded a plane at Louisville International Airport and arrested Christian Martin, 51, of Raleigh, North Carolina, a day after a grand jury indicted him on three counts of murder, arson and other charges in connection with the November 2015 slayings of Calvin and Pamela Phillips and their neighbor, Edward Dansereau, Attorney General Andy Beshear said in a videotaped statement Saturday. On Nov. 18, 2015, Calvin Phillips, 59, was found shot to death inside his home in Pembroke, the attorney general said in a news release. At the time, the Phillipses and Martin lived across the street from each other. The bodies of Pamela Phillips, 58, and their neighbor Dansereau, 63, were found a few miles away in a cornfield in her car, which had been burned, the news release says. The attorney general has not discussed a possible motive for the killings, but in a 2016 interview with NBC affiliate WSMV-TV, Martin had accused Calvin Phillips of having an affair with his wife. Asked in the interview if he thought he would be charged with the murders, he replied that he had “no worries.” The slayings occurred just days before Martin, a former Army Ranger major, faced a military court-martial on charges of assault consummated by battery upon a child under the age of sixteen and conduct unbecoming an officer, military records state, ABC News reports.John Kelly, a representative for the Phillips family, told CNN that Calvin Phillips was scheduled to testify against Martin. Martin was convicted of assaulting his stepson by “placing his arms around his stepson’s neck in a ‘rear naked choke,’ lifting him off the ground, and squeezing his neck until his body went limp and felt numb,” the records state, ABC News reports. • Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. He was dismissed from the military and placed under “confinement for 90 days,” according to the records. A pilot for PSA Airlines, which is owned by American Airlines, Martin is on administrative suspension pending the outcome of the investigation and court proceedings, American Airlines said in a statement. In a statement to The Washington Post, the airline said Martin went through a background check and vetting, but said there was no “criminal history that would disqualify him from being a commercial pilot.” “All of us at American Airlines and PSA airlines are deeply saddened to have learned about these allegations from 2015,” the statement said. “We will provide any investigative assistance possible to law enforcement throughout their investigation.” On Saturday, passengers on Martin’s plane said they were shocked when their pilot was taken into custody while they were waiting to take off. “It was like something you would totally see in a movie,” passenger Ashley Martin told local station WRAL. Martin is being held without bond in the Christian County Detention Center.