[3 reports] Park Sun-gwan, CEO of Aricell fire disaster that killed 23 people, sentenced to 4 years in prison confirmed

'경영 책임자' 인정… Violation of safety and health obligations under the Severe Accident Punishment Act

The sentence was drastically reduced from 15 years in prison in the first trial... 아들 총괄본부장은 징역 7년 확정

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Lee Young-seop = A four-year prison sentence was confirmed for Park Soon-gwan, CEO of Aricell, who was indicted in connection with the Aricell fire disaster that killed 23 people.

On the 20th, the 1st Division of the Supreme Court (Chief Justice Dae-yeop Cheon) confirmed the original decision that sentenced Representative Park to four years in prison, who was indicted on charges of violating the Severe Accident Punishment Act.

CEO Park's son, Park Joong-eon, general manager of Aricell, who was also indicted, was also sentenced to seven years in prison in the second trial. A fine of 800 million won was confirmed for Aricell Corporation.

The Aricell fire disaster occurred on June 24, 2024, when a fire broke out at the Aricell factory in Seosin-myeon, Hwaseong-si, killing 23 workers and injuring 9.

Representative Park was arrested and indicted on charges of violating his duty to ensure safety and health, such as failing to check for harmful and risk factors and failing to prepare a manual to prepare for the occurrence of a serious disaster.

The first trial found CEO Park guilty on the main charge, saying he was a 'manager in charge' subject to punishment under the Severe Accident Punishment Act, and sentenced him to 15 years in prison.

The court pointed out that if a company has a 'safety and health manager', in principle, that person becomes the manager, and business managers such as CEO Park are exempt from responsibility.

However, since Aricell did not have a safety and health manager, it was decided that CEO Park should be viewed as the management manager.

At the same time, CEO Park admitted that he had violated his obligations by failing to set goals and management policies regarding safety and health, failing to identify and establish improvement procedures for hazards and risk factors, and failing to allocate a budget for disaster prevention.

General Manager Park Jung-eon, who was also indicted on charges of violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act, was also sentenced to 15 years in prison in the first trial.

The first trial sentence that CEO Park and General Manager Park received was the highest sentence handed down since the Serious Accident Punishment Act came into effect in 2022.

The second trial also acknowledged that Representative Park violated the obligation to ensure safety and health under the Serious Accident Punishment Act.

However, the charge of violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act was overturned, saying that General Manager Park had no obligation to install emergency exits on each floor of the factory and did not violate the obligation to maintain emergency regulations.

Based on this, CEO Park was also found not guilty of the peripheral indictment that "he caused a serious industrial accident by violating General Manager Park Joong-eon's obligations under the Occupational Safety and Health Act in order to ensure safety and health."

However, the preliminary indictment alleging that General Manager Park and others violated the duty of care during work due to violation of the duty to ensure safety and health was found guilty.

The second trial pointed out, “Even if it is not mediated by a violation of a specific duty under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, a significant causal relationship can be recognized if it is mediated by a violation of the duty of care at work based on general foreseeability.”

The second trial also found an error in the first trial's judgment, which limitedly reflected the agreement reached with the victim's family in the sentencing.

Accordingly, CEO Park's sentence was drastically reduced to 4 years in prison, and General Manager Park's sentence was reduced to 7 years in prison.

The Supreme Court dismissed all appeals from the defendants and the prosecution, saying it could accept this second trial ruling.