SEOUL: The chief executive of a South Korean lithium battery manufacturer has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for a factory fire that killed 23 workers last year.
The Suwon District Court imposed the lengthy prison term on Aricell CEO Park Soon-kwan after finding the company prioritised profit over worker safety.
The June 2024 blaze at the lithium battery plant was one of South Korea’s worst industrial disasters in years, with most victims being Chinese nationals.
Park was convicted for violating the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and the Industrial Safety and Health Act.
A critical factor in the tragedy was the emergency exit route being located in an area normally off-limits to dispatched workers, which became a main reason they lost their lives.
Park’s son, who served as the company’s general manager, also received a 15-year prison sentence and a one million won fine.
The court stated that Park gave almost no instructions on worker safety and focused solely on business performance reports from his son.
This fire was not an unforeseeable misfortune but a disaster that could have erupted at any time.
Behind it lies the grim reality of an industrial structure that prioritises production and profit over worker safety, as well as the precarious conditions faced by dispatched labourers.
Prosecutors had charged Park with failing to conduct inspections of hazardous and harmful risk factors and not preparing safety manuals for serious accidents.
They also blamed the company’s gross safety failures for the deadly blaze, including a locked door that worsened casualties.
At his final hearing in July, Park apologised to the families of the victims.
On that painful day, many people lost their precious family members, and no words can be enough, but once again I apologise to the bereaved families, he said. – AFP