ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, December 28, 1995 TAG: 9512280065
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
SOURCE: Associated Press
Wearing white pins symbolizing their grief, the families of 501 people killed when a shopping mall collapsed sat silently Wednesday as a judge sentenced the mall's owner to more than 10 years in prison.
The sentence was a disappointment: Victims' relatives had protested for weeks seeking the death penalty for the owner and the president of the ritzy Sampoong Department Store, both found guilty of negligence.
In the worst civil engineering disaster in South Korean history, the five-story mall crumpled June 30 with more than 1,500 shoppers and employees inside. At least 900 people were injured. The remains of some victims never were found.
``Bring my son back!'' one relative wailed outside the courtroom.
Faulty design and poor construction were the cause of the disaster, which came to symbolize the imprudence - and danger - of South Korea's rush toward economic growth.
Mall owner Lee Joon, 73, was sentenced to 101/2 years in prison. His son Lee Han-sang, 43, the president of the mall, was sentenced to seven years. In addition to negligence, the son was convicted of bribing government officials.
Also convicted were 12 Seoul city officials who took bribes for allowing illegal design changes and construction. Their sentences ranged from eight months to three years, with fines up to $17,000.
Eleven defendants, mostly low-level mall and construction company officials, were given two-year suspended sentences.
All have 10 days to appeal.
The mall collapsed only a few months after a bridge fell in Seoul during rush hour. In both incidents, corners had been cut and deals made to speed construction during the country's rapid industrialization.
Sampoong, only 5 years old, was built during the busiest period of South Korea's construction boom. Witnesses said the roof had been crumbling all day, but that officials left the mall after deciding to take no action.
``The prevalence of faulty construction, lack of safety and negligence for human life brought about the collapse of the Sampoong Department Store,'' senior Judge Lee Kwang-yol said Wednesday. ``And in that sense, every citizen of this country was a victim.''
A group of the victims' families said both Lees should be executed, although under South Korean law the death penalty is not applicable in negligence cases.
LENGTH: Medium: 54 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Lee Joon\Guilty of negligence KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB