South Korean court fines Samsung Heavy over oil spill

Mon, Jun 23 02:12 PM

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ A South Korean court fined Samsung Heavy Industries Co. 30 million won (US$28,870; 18,540) Monday for its involvement in a major oil spill, a court official said.

The local court in Seosan also sentenced two crew members to up to three years in prison for violating the ocean pollution law, court official Yoon Young-yoon said. The fine and prison sentences were the maximum allowed under the law.

The crew members piloted two tugboats pulling a Samsung-operated crane-carrying barge that slammed into the Hong Kong-registered tanker Hebei Spirit on Dec. 7, causing it to release nearly 80,000 barrels of oil into South Korea's coastal waters.

The spill jeopardized the ecosystem and the livelihood of residents in the area, home to some of the country's most scenic beaches. Samsung Heavy and the crew members of the tugboats have a week to appeal, Yoon said.

The court also ruled that Hebei Spirit Shipping Co., the owner of the oil tanker, and two of its crew members were not guilty of pollution charges, Yoon said.

Prosecutors had sought the maximum fine amount and up to three-year sentences for the tanker crew.

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