Sewol ferry disaster: owner’s heirs must pay South Korean government US$146m
- The Sewol ferry sank in 2014, killing 304 people, in one of South Korea’s worst maritime disasters
- The children of the billionaire ferry owner have been ordered to repay the government for the costs it incurred in the disaster
The Seoul Central District Court ordered three children who inherited the assets of Yoo Byung-eun, head of ferry operator Chonghaejin Marine Co, to pay 170 billion won to the government, holding the late billionaire responsible for failing to prevent the tragedy.
The 6,800-tonne ship sank off the country’s southwestern coast in 2014, killing 304 people, mostly high school pupils on an excursion, in one of South Korea’s worst maritime disasters.
Yoo, then 73, was found dead in the wild in 2014 as he was being pursued by police for questioning on corruption allegations.
Thousands of police officers were mobilised to hunt down Yoo, who doubled as a religious leader.
Investigations concluded the disaster was the result of numerous human factors. The ferry was illegally redesigned to accommodate more passengers, the cargo hold was overloaded, and it was being controlled by inexperienced crew at the time of the accident.