Pyongyang: North Korea detained another senior official over the recent failed launch of a newly 5,000-ton-class naval destroyer, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Monday. An investigation group of the accident informed its work to the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party on Sunday, the report said.
According to Kuwait News Agency, based on data from the investigation group, the law-enforcement organ summoned and detained Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the Munitions Industry Department of the party's Central Committee. The KCNA reported that Ri was "greatly responsible for the occurrence of the serious accident." This detention follows the arrest of three other officials over the incident that occurred during a launch ceremony for the new warship at a shipyard on Wednesday. Country leader Kim Jong-un has called it a "criminal act" that could not be tolerated.
The newly-built destroyer sank partway into the water and sustained damage to its hull. Meanwhile, the KCNA stated that work to restore the balance of the warship is underway. "At the scene of the destroyer launch accident, the work for completely restoring the balance of the warship is being actively conducted under the technical guidance of an expert group according to its schedule," the KCNA added.