CEO of South Korean battery maker reportedly arrested after deadly fire

SEOUL >> The CEO of a South Korean lithium battery maker that was hit by a fire in June that killed 23 people was arrested after a court issued an arrest warrant late Wednesday on charges of violating labor protection laws, media reports said.

Park Soon-kwan, CEO of Aricell, which is majority-owned by S-Connect, apologized after the fire but said the company had taken all necessary safety precautions and provided training for staff at the time.

The Suwon District Court, which has jurisdiction over Hwaseong city where the factory is located, approved the arrest warrant against Park, Yonhap News reported late Wednesday.

No court official was available for confirmation early Thursday. Park's lawyer was not immediately available for comment.

When Park entered the courtroom for a hearing on Wednesday, he did not answer reporters' questions about the charges against him, saying only, “I'm sorry,” according to television footage.

Authorities investigating the fire released a report on Friday saying the fire was caused by a rush to meet a delivery deadline and failure to act when there were signs of dangerous quality defects in batteries being produced.

The high number of victims is due to the fact that temporary workers were hired to catch up in production without adequate safety and escape training, police and labor ministry officials said.