END TO SEWOL FERRY SPECIAL PROBE

[Anchor Lead]

A special probe into alleged fabrication of Sewol ferry sinking evidence has been wrapped up after 90 days. The special counsel has found there was no forgery. The bereaved families of the Sewol disaster expressed regret over the probe findings.

[Pkg]

Special counsel Lee Hyun-joo and his team investigated three allegations. First: The Sewol ferry’s black box, DVR, had been replaced. The allegation was raised by the Special Investigation Commission on Social Disasters, which said the locking device was in a different state at the time it was collected and afterwards. The probe team concluded that the DVR was not replaced.

[Soundbite] Lee Hyun-joo(Special Counsel) : "The DVR was collected underwater amid poor visibility. Escaping the site of sinking secretly from others would have been extremely difficult."

The second allegation: The restored camera footage from the ferry submitted to court in 2014 was fabricated. The team concluded this was not true. It said the restored data could have been mixed with other files when it was stored on the desk of a private expert for nearly two years.

[Soundbite] "It’s hard to conclude that the camera footage data was fabricated, as there is a possibility of contamination."

The third allegation: The issue was not investigated properly by the government. Upon investigation, no evidence of power abuse or dereliction of duty was found. The special counsel team wrapped up the investigation after 90 days as no lawsuits have been filed regarding the allegations. The bereaved families of Sewol disaster victims are demanding additional investigations, as they believe the probe was insufficient.

[Soundbite] Yoo Kyung-keun(Sewol ferry victims’ bereaved family committee) : "There is still no answer as to why the cameras were off at the time and nothing was recorded when the accident occurred."

So far nine official probes into the Sewol ferry sinking have been carried out.