All 6 Sewol Ferry Coast Guard Commanders' Warrants Rejected (Comprehensive)

Court: "Difficult to Recognize the Necessity and Proportionality of Detention"

Former Korea Coast Guard Commissioner Kim Seok-gyun, who is suspected of 'helicopter rescue delay' on the day of the Sewol ferry disaster, is attending the detention warrant hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 8th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] All arrest warrants requested by the prosecution against the six former Coast Guard commanders accused of failing in the rescue operations during the Sewol ferry disaster have been dismissed.

The Seoul Central District Court dismissed the arrest warrants requested for six individuals, including former Commissioner Kim Seok-gyun, on the 9th. The court explained the reason for dismissal, stating, "According to related criminal rulings on the on-site commanders at the time of the accident, the suspects in the command line may bear criminal responsibility for professional negligence, but at this stage, it is difficult to recognize the necessity and appropriateness of detention."

Former Commissioner Kim and others underwent a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant substantive examination) at the court for about 4 hours and 15 minutes starting from 10:30 a.m. the previous day. It was reported that they maintained their position in court, stating, "We feel moral responsibility for the Sewol ferry disaster but have no legal responsibility." On the other hand, the families of the Sewol victims who testified emphasized, "They should have been immediately detained at the time of the disaster," and "Even now, to prevent further evidence destruction and to ensure thorough and focused investigation, the suspects must be detained."

Kim and others are accused of failing to fulfill their duty of care necessary for guiding passengers to evacuate and conducting rescue operations during the Sewol ferry accident, resulting in 303 deaths and injuries to 142 people. The prosecution's view is that although the Coast Guard commanders received reports of the Sewol accident, they did not take sufficient initial measures such as collecting on-site information for command or requesting rescue cooperation, which led to delayed rescue and large-scale casualties. The prosecution also cited in the warrant request that Kim and others fabricated various report documents to conceal their failure to take proper initial actions.

With the court's dismissal of the arrest warrants for the Coast Guard commanders, the prosecution is expected to choose one of the options: re-requesting the warrants after supplementary investigation or proceeding with non-detention indictment and proving the charges during the trial process. This was the first time the prosecution sought to secure the custody of the Coast Guard commanders. It has also been 5 years and 9 months since the Sewol ferry accident occurred on April 16, 2014.