Prosecution Seeks 2 Years Imprisonment for Former West Power President in 'Late Kim Yong-gyun Death Case'... 1 Year 6 Months for Former Subcontractor President

The funeral hall at Seoul National University Hospital in Jongno-gu, Seoul, where the mourning room for the late Kim Yong-gyun, who died during maintenance inspection at Taean Thermal Power Plant in Chungnam on February 7, 2019, was set up. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] The late Kim Yong-gyun (then 24 years old) was sentenced to 2 years to 1 year and 6 months in prison for charges including involuntary manslaughter due to negligence in connection with his death.

At the first trial sentencing hearing held on the 21st, presided over by Judge Park Sang-kwon of the Daejeon District Court Seosan Branch Criminal Division 2, the prosecution requested a 2-year prison sentence for former Korea Western Power President Kim Byung-sook and a 1 year and 6 months prison sentence for former Korea Power Technology President Baek Nam-ho, both charged with involuntary manslaughter due to negligence and violations of the Industrial Safety and Health Act.

The accident occurred in December 2018 at the Korea Western Power Taean Thermal Power Plant, and it has been over three years since Kim passed away, and about 16 months since the prosecution indicted former President Kim and others in August last year.

The prosecution appealed to the court, stating, "Most of the defendants have shown an attitude of not accepting responsibility even three years after the accident, saying things like 'We don't know why the victim died' or 'We never ordered such work.' Strict punishment is necessary."

Kim, a non-regular worker belonging to the subcontractor Korea Power Technology, who was working at the Taean Thermal Power Plant, was found dead early morning on December 11, 2018, caught in a conveyor belt used for coal transportation.

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