The police officers in charge, who were accused of negligence for mishandling a fatal vehicle fall accident at a quarry in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province in August last year, have been cleared of charges and will not be referred for prosecution.
The South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency announced on the 30th that, following an investigation, it has decided not to refer four officers, including Superintendent A from Sacheon Police Station, who had been accused of dereliction of duty.
A firefighter who arrived at the scene where a vehicle running on the road of a quarry owned by an aggregate production company in Sacheon, Gyeongnam, fell is inspecting the inside of the vehicle. Provided by Gyeongnam Fire Headquarters
On August 2 last year, an SUV traveling on a road inside a quarry operated by an aggregate production company in Sacheon-eup, Sacheon, fell 4 meters, resulting in the deaths of both the driver in his 60s and a passenger in his 50s, who suffered severe head and other injuries.
Superintendent A and others in charge of the case concluded that it was a simple traffic accident, judging that the vehicle overturned due to driver error and that the occupants died after being struck on the head by sharp rocks.
However, the bereaved family, who obtained CCTV footage from the scene, argued that it was a serious industrial accident, citing evidence that blasting occurred as the vehicle approached an area where explosives had been set. This led to controversy over an allegedly inadequate investigation, and in October of that year, the family, together with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, filed a complaint with the police against Superintendent A and others for dereliction of duty.
The South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency, which took over the case, reinvestigated by conducting a forensic analysis with the National Forensic Service, reviewing CCTV footage and the vehicle's event data recorder (EDR), and referred B, a man in his 40s who was the blasting team leader, for prosecution on charges of occupational negligence resulting in death.
The investigation found that blasting was carried out without following safety protocols such as issuing advance warnings or assigning monitors in hazardous areas, and that rocks from the blast struck the vehicle and its occupants, causing the vehicle to fall and resulting in the deaths of the occupants.
The bereaved family of the "Gyeongnam Sacheon Quarry Vehicle Fall Fatal Accident" and Kim Eunhyung, head of the Gyeongnam branch of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, are submitting a letter of appreciation and a complaint to the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency. Photo by Lee Seryung
The South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency stated regarding the four accused officers, "At the time, the officers relied on witness statements, failed to properly examine the accident vehicle, were negligent in their management, and inadequately searched the vehicle's interior, resulting in insufficient initial response." However, they added, "The investigation was conducted according to procedures for initial investigation and traffic accident handling, including on-site investigation, witness interviews, postmortem examination, and retrieval of black box footage."
The agency further explained, "Although there was negligence in failing to recognize the connection to the blasting accident, it is difficult to conclude that the officers intentionally neglected or abandoned their duties," clarifying the reason for not referring the case for prosecution.
Additionally, two labor inspectors from the Jinju branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, who were accused of failing to issue a stop-work order on the day of the accident, were also cleared, as the cause of the accident had not been determined at the time, making it impossible to issue such an order.
As for the 12 current and former quarry employees who were suspected of evidence destruction and obstruction of justice, including additional blasting after the accident, removal of documents from the office, and attempts to scrap the vehicle, the agency concluded that there was insufficient evidence to prove any motive or intent to interfere with the investigation and decided not to refer them for prosecution.
However, one police officer was referred for prosecution on charges of falsifying official documents, as it was confirmed that some documents, such as the postmortem report, had been fabricated. The agency also reported that the disciplinary department would be notified of the inadequate actions of the four accused officers for further disciplinary measures.
A police spokesperson stated, "To prevent recurrence, we are strengthening scientific forensic investigations at traffic accident scenes and supporting traffic accident investigators," adding, "We are also providing case-based training to frontline investigators to prevent inadequate initial investigations."
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