TOKYO (AP) — SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Masayoshi Son has denounced the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but defended the Japanese technology giant's investment fund, which includes Saudi money, as work that needs to be finished.

Speaking Monday at an earnings news conference, Son called the death an attack on "a precious life but also on journalism and the freedom of speech."

About half of Son's $100 billion investment fund, established in 2016, comes from Saudi Arabia. He is partnering with the kingdom's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Khashoggi was killed at the Saudi Consulate in Turkey on Oct. 2.

SoftBank reported its fiscal quarterly profit rose nearly five-fold to 542.6 billion yen ($4.8 billion) in July-September, helped by better results from U.S. wireless Sprint and British IoT company ARM.