CEO of South Korean lithium battery giant arrested!

On August 28, the CEO of South Korean lithium battery company Aricell was arrested in connection with the "Hwaseong Battery Factory Fire" accident, which killed 23 people and injured 9 people.

On the same day, a South Korean court approved an arrest warrant for Park Chun-gwan. Investigators said Aricell's management was suspected of violating workplace safety regulations. The fire was one of the worst factory disasters in South Korea in recent years. Aricell's parent company S-Connect did not respond.

After the fire, Park Chun-gwan issued an apology statement: "We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and express our deepest condolences and apologies to the families of the victims."

He added: "We bear a huge responsibility and will do everything possible to sincerely support the deceased and their families."

At the same time, the court also approved a detention order for Park Chun-gwan's son, who is a senior executive of the company.

Authorities investigating the fire released a report on Friday, saying that the rush to meet supply deadlines and the lack of action to address signs of dangerous quality defects in the batteries produced led to the fire.

Police and labor ministry officials said that hiring temporary workers who had not received proper safety and emergency escape training to make up for the backlog of production led to a large number of casualties.

Aricell is a Korean lithium battery manufacturer established in 2020 by a certain Innovation and a certain Technology. The joint venture's equity is mainly held by Nasdaq-listed S Connect. Aricell focuses on the production of lithium thionyl chloride batteries and is a leading company in the Korean market in this field.