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Fourth Official Detained In DPRK Over Capsized Destroyer

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Fourth Official Detained In DPRK Over Capsized Destroyer

Pyongyang has found the main culprit.

The deputy director of the military industry department of the Workers' Party of Korea Ri Hyun Song has been arrested in North Korea following the incident involving a new destroyer, the BBC reports, citing official sources. He is the fourth official to be detained after the ship capsized while being launched in the presence of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

The state-run Korean Central Telegraphic Agency (KCTAK) has named Ri Hyun-seong as the main person responsible for the serious accident. He became the highest-ranking arrestee in the case.

Ahead of that, a ceremony to launch a new 5,000-ton displacement destroyer was held at the Cheongjin Shipyard in North Korea. According to the CTAC, the ship tilted and capsized into the water at the time of launching due to a control error.

The North Korean leader said the accident was "unimaginable and absolutely unacceptable, a serious crime caused by carelessness, irresponsibility and unscientific empiricism." He emphasized that the urgent restoration of the destroyer had become a political issue directly related to the authority of the state, and instructed that the restoration be completed before the June plenum of the Party Central Committee.

The first destroyer of this type, the Choi Hyun, was successfully launched in April at the Nampo shipyard. At that time, the DPRK officially demonstrated a large surface warship for the first time in a long time. In mid-April, the media drew attention to satellite images showing the construction of what is believed to be the largest warship in the country's history.

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