Man sentenced to five years in prison for fatal Christmas apartment fire

SEOUL, Sept. 4 (Yonhap) — A Seoul court on Wednesday sentenced an elderly man to five years in prison without work for causing a fire at an apartment building in northern Seoul on Christmas Day last year that killed three people and injured 26 others.

The 78-year-old, surnamed Kim, was charged after his unfinished cigarette sparked the fire in his third-floor apartment of an apartment building in the northern district of Dobong on December 25. However, he fled without taking any action to extinguish the fire.

The fire spread throughout the building.

Two men in their 30s, one of whom jumped with his seven-month-old daughter in his arms, were found in cardiac arrest but later pronounced dead. Twenty-seven others were injured. One resident who was being treated in hospital died in June, bringing the death toll to three.

Kim reportedly smoked for seven hours while watching the game of Go on the computer. He then left his room without completely putting out the cigarette butt, causing nearby objects to catch fire. The flames eventually spread throughout the building.

According to the public prosecutor's office, Kim allowed the fire to spread further by opening the apartment door and the bedroom door. Nevertheless, he fled through the living room window without taking any action.

Kim claimed that the fire was not caused by his cigarette because he had completely stubbed it out in the ashtray, but the Northern Seoul District Court rejected his claim.

“The grieving families of the victims were faced with incurable pain and wounds at the loss of their loved ones, yet the defendant appeared to avoid responsibility and made no effort to repair the damage. Nor was he forgiven by the families of the victims,” ​​the court said.