Another overturned "humidifier disinfectant"... "I can't punish you like SK, Aekyung, and Oxy."

[Anchor]
The Supreme Court overturned a second trial ruling that sentenced SK Chemicals and former representatives of Aekyung Industrial Co., who are accused of making and selling humidifier disinfectants that are fatal to the human body, to imprisonment.

The ingredients of the raw material are different from those of Oxy, who was convicted in 2018, so it was judged that they could not be tied together and punished.

I'm reporter Jang A-young.

[Reporter]
In January, the Seoul High Court sentenced Hong Ji-ho, former CEO of SK Chemicals, and Ahn Yong-chan, former CEO of Aekyung Industrial Co., to four years in prison.

It overturned the acquittal of the first trial, saying that it was actually tested for toxicity against the public by selling the product even though it was aware of the risk of the product.

[Min Soo-yeon / Victim of humidifier disinfectant (January 11): SK, E-Mart, and Aekyung were guilty. I was guilty from the beginning. I really hope the Supreme Court doesn't reverse it.]

However, the Supreme Court overturned the second trial ruling again in a year.

This is because of the disinfectant raw material, which has been an issue since the first trial.

Oxy's main ingredient, which carries a maximum sentence of six years in prison, is PHMG or PGH, but

'Humidifier Mate' and 'E-Mart Humidifier Sterilizer' made by SK Chemicals and Aekyung are raw materials from CMIT and MIT,
Because it is a different product from
oxy, it cannot be tied up and punished.

With no link to Oxy recognized, the second trial court must re-examine which humidifier disinfectant the victims died from.

The possibility of judging that the statute of limitations, which is seven years, has expired has also increased.

The victims died in 2010 and 2011, but prosecutors charged SK Chemicals and Aekyung, saying their accomplice, Oxy, was indicted in 2019 and the statute of limitations was suspended.

I'm YTN's Jang Ayoung.

Edit
Image: Electronic
Design: Lee Ga-eun