Gwangju district court said in a statement on Thursday that Kim Han-sik, president of Chonghaejin Marine Co, also received a KRW 2m ($1,800) fine over the tragic sinking that killed more than 300 people, many of them schoolchildren.

The court said he failed to stop the improper storage and overloading of cargo that contributed to the sinking.

The same court last week sentenced 15 surviving crew, including the captain, to jail terms of between five and 36 years for charges ranging from negligence to homicide.

Divers