Cheongju District Court Sentences 3 Years Imprisonment and 5 Years Probation
"Considering Confession and Agreement with Victim's Family"
A bus driver who caused the deaths of four people by rear-ending a van while checking text messages while driving was sentenced to a suspended prison term.
According to the legal community on the 2nd, the Cheongju District Court Criminal Division 2 (Presiding Judge An Jae-hoon) sentenced A (59), a highway bus driver tried for violating the Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling (causing death and injury), to three years in prison with a five-year suspension.
On October 21 last year, around 8:55 a.m., A was driving a highway bus inside the Suriti Tunnel on the Dangjin-Yeongdeok Expressway northbound in Suhan-myeon, Boeun-gun, Chungbuk, when he rear-ended a 15-passenger van that was moving slowly ahead.
The appearance of the van at the time of the accident. [Photo by Chungbuk Fire Headquarters, Yonhap News]
As a result of the accident, four of the 11 passengers in the van died. Two others were seriously injured, and the remaining five sustained minor injuries. It was reported that all of them were elementary school classmates in their 50s and 60s, who were about to retire and were on a weekend outing together, which added to the sorrow.
On the bus carrying a total of 26 passengers, one passenger was seriously injured, and the driver A sustained minor injuries. During the police investigation, A reportedly stated, "The accident happened while I briefly looked at my phone to check a text message." At the time, the bus driven by A was traveling at a high speed of 96 km/h in the first lane of the two-lane one-way highway and collided with the vehicle ahead immediately after entering the tunnel.
The first trial court pointed out, "The defendant caused a serious accident resulting in the deaths of four people due to failure to keep proper lookout ahead." Regarding the sentencing reasons, the court explained, "However, the defendant confessed and reached a settlement with the bereaved families, and there is no record of similar offenses or punishments exceeding fines, which were taken into consideration."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
