Supreme Court Finalizes 4-Year Prison Sentence for Aricell CEO, Significantly Reduced

[Anchor]

Regarding the Aricell battery fire disaster that killed 23 people, the Supreme Court has sentenced the CEO of Aricell to four years in prison. The appellate court's ruling, which significantly reduced the sentence from 15 years in the first trial to four years, has been finalized.

Reporter Jeon Yeonnam has the details.

[Reporter]

Thick smoke fills the sky, followed by massive explosions.

In June 2024, a fire broke out at the primary lithium battery manufacturer Aricell's factory in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, leaving 23 workers dead and nine injured.

Due to the accident, Aricell CEO Park Soon-kwan was indicted and detained on charges of violating safety and health assurance obligations, such as failing to inspect hazardous and risk factors and failing to establish a preparedness manual for serious disasters.

Today (October 20), the Supreme Court finalized the lower court's ruling sentencing CEO Park to four years in prison.

Previously, the first-instance court recognized CEO Park as a management responsible party subject to punishment under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, acknowledged the charges as guilty, and sentenced him to 15 years in prison.

In addition, Park Joong-eon, the general manager of Aricell and CEO Park's son who was indicted alongside him on charges including violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, was also sentenced to 15 years in prison.

This was the highest sentence handed down since the implementation of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act in 2022.

However, the appellate court acknowledged CEO Park as the management responsible party but significantly reduced his sentence to four years in prison compared to the first trial, while General Manager Park's sentence was also reduced to seven years.

Unlike the first trial, the appellate court overturned the ruling by finding CEO Park not guilty of the charges concerning the obligation to install emergency exits, stating that he had no obligation to install them and did not violate the obligation to maintain them.

It also pointed out that there was an error in the first trial's judgment, which had only limitedly reflected the fact that agreements were reached with the victims' bereaved families in sentencing.

Today's Supreme Court ruling dismissed all appeals filed by both the prosecution and the defendants, determining that there were no problems with the appellate court's judgment, and finalized the four-year prison sentence as ruled by the second instance.

Following the Supreme Court ruling, the bereaved families of the Aricell victims held a press conference and expressed strong regret over the finalization of the significantly reduced sentence.

(Camera Journalist: Yang Hyun-chul | Video Editor: Kim Yoon-sung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.