Polaris Shipping’s chief executive Kim Wan-Jung has been sentenced over the fatal sinking of the VLOC Stellar Daisy in 2017.
The converted 266,000-dwt ship (built 1993) went down off Uruguay, killing 22 of the 24 crew.
Busan District Court found him guilty of not reporting vessel defects, but not guilty of failing in his obligation to maintain the "balance" of the ship.
As a result, Kim, 64, received six months' imprisonment with a year on probation. The court has also handed down a KRW 15m ($12,426) fine to Polaris Shipping.
A Polaris executive confirmed the court’s sentence, adding that the company's operations will not be affected.
“It is a six-months imprisonment, but the enforcement is exempted for one year. If he [Kim] is not guilty of any other matter within the one year, the sentence will be made void,” said the company.
The Busan District Prosecutors’ Office is not satisfied with the verdict, however, as it was seeking a jail term of between three and five years.
It will be appealing to a higher court and is now demanding four years of imprisonment for Kim.
Families dissatisfied
In a statement, the Committee of MV Stellar Daisy (Korean) Families & The Citizens Committee cited the prosecution as saying: “We reviewed evidence and legality issues with the help of marine experts, throughout the investigation and trial.
“We will do our best by taking into account the opinions of Stellar Daisy families, the significance of the case [and] legality in regard to unproven responsibility due to disagreement with the judges."
The victims' families held a press conference at which they welcomed the first guilty verdict in the case following the revision of the Ship Safety Law in 2015.
This was intended to safeguard lives after the Sewol ferry sinking killed 304 people in 2014.
But the families expressed their "frustration and disappointment" about the court’s "light punishment".
Polaris' lawyers had argued that the sinking itself could not form the basis of a case as the cause has not yet been revealed, the families added.
VDR data is incomplete, according to the statement, and does not feature the voices of the crew in the last moments before the sinking.
A public hearing last year came to an agreement that another search would be needed to figure out the cause of the sinking and recover the remains of crew.
The families have asked the state to cover the cost of this by claiming it from Polaris.
Heo Young-ju, co-chair of the committee, said: “As a result of fierce effort from the Sewol ferry families, the vessel safety law was revised and the accused were found partially guilty.
"Therefore, we will not stop our fight to find the truth which will eventually leave another important legacy in our society."
Fateful voyage
Stellar Daisy was carrying 260,000 tonnes of iron ore from Brazil to China on its fateful voyage. The ship was one of several ore carriers owned by Polaris Shipping and committed to long-term contracts of affreightment with Brazilian miner Vale.
Privately-owned Polaris has been working to renew its fleet since 2013.
According to VesselsValue.com, the company ordered a total of 30 bulkers in the last six years. It has already taken delivery of 14 vessels.
Polaris will be sending 10 VLOC that were built in the early 1990s for demolition.
The company has struck a deal with Vale to sell off two-thirds of its VLOC fleet as the cost of complying with the IMO sulphur cap makes older bulker giants less desirable.
