South Korean Supreme Court upholds four-year jail term for Aricell CEO over deadly factory fire

South Korea’s Supreme Court on Tuesday affirmed a four-year imprisonment for Aricell chief executive Park Soon-kwan for failing to implement sufficient safety measures at the company’s Hwaseong lithium-battery plant, where a fire in 2024 killed 23 workers and wounded nine. A district court had originally sentenced Park to 15 years under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, which mandates a minimum one-year term for fatal workplace incidents.

An appeals court cut the term to four years and dismissed a charge that Park and his son did not install an emergency exit on the second floor, reasoning that the law does not specifically require exits on every level and taking into account the company’s compensation to victims’ families. The Supreme Court upheld that reduced verdict and also confirmed a seven-year sentence for Park’s son, who had likewise seen his term lowered from 15 years. The rulings represent the toughest penalties imposed on a CEO since the 2022 safety law took effect.