Captain Lee Joonseok of the capsized South Korean ferry, Sewol, has admitted to every single charge except for the charge of murder of over 300 people.

On April 16, 2014, the Sewol ferry capsized into the coast of the South Korean Jindo Island where more than 300 out of 476 passengers died or became unaccounted for, over three-quarters of the group being second year students at Danwon High School.

The captain of the ship, Lee Joonseok (aged 69), and three other crew members were charged with several allegations such as negligence of maritime law, failure to protect passengers, and last but not least, indicted for homicide [on behalf of 300 deaths and more] through willful negligence.

Many photos and video evidence from the time when the unfortunate disaster occurred show that the captain and several other Sewol crew members were fleeing from the sinking ship after reportedly telling all passengers to remain in their cabins, instead of notifying them to put on life jackets or to escape to open areas.

The commands reportedly made by the captain telling all passengers to remain inside the ship, despite the rapid water flow, are what lead to the mass casualties.

However, at a trial held at the Gwangju District Court on the 8th, Captain Lee admitted to all the allegations made against him except for the charge of [mass] murder.

When asked by the attorney, “What do you think about the many lives that were taken due to failure on your part to properly necessitate safety protection [life jackets] and precautions?” Captain Lee answered, “I have made a deadly [terrible] mistake. I am sorry.”

Captain Lee Joonseok strongly emphasized, “Even if I am indicted for only a few of the charges made against me, I know that I will still never be able to get out of prison. I have no complaints regarding this. However, I have never thought once to willfully neglect [murder the passengers to save my own life].”

When the captain was asked why he continues to fight for this case when he has already admitted to all the charges, he replied, “No matter how well my lawyer helps me and no matter how well God helps me, I know that I can never step foot out of prison again. But I can never let my children and grandchildren live the rest of their lives as a murderer’s family. How could I have possibly thought to leave these dying people [passengers] just to run away and save my own life?”

When the attorney asked the captain if his statement meant that he admits to all charges except for the charge of homicide, Lee Joonseok answered, “Yes. Other than the murder, I admit and accept all other charges and will receive the necessary punishments.”

Captain Lee also went on to apologize, “I bow my head and apologize to all the Danwon High School students, [South Korean] citizens, and victims’ families and will continue to pray for [the victims’] souls until the day I die.”

"And to all the ferry crew members who ended up having to come to trial due to my flaws and mistakes, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to redeem myself to them again," Captain Lee stated.

Many of the crew members who were brought into questioning for the case over the course of several months have all stated that the captain did, in fact, try to escape the Sewol before any of his passengers could and that he is lying just to avoid the blame.

Some of the crew members even admitted that the captain was lying when he said that he notified the passengers to leave or put on all safety equipment.

However, other crew members have stated that the captain attended to all his duties and told passengers to escape.

Prosecutors stated, however, “All their [the crew] stories about when or how the captain notified passengers to escape keep changing and it doesn’t match up to any of the court testimonies. From what it looks like, it seems as if [the captain and crew members] all decided to form their own stories and match it to each other’s once the case blew out of proportion. None of them match, though.”

The outcome of the trial and case have not yet been decided.

Source: Herald Corp and Yonhap