53 people jailed in explosion case involving China’s Xiangshui

On 30th November, the Yancheng Intermediate People's Court of Jiangsu Province, China, and seven basic people's courts pronounced judgment in the first trial of 22 criminal cases involving in the "3.21" explosion accident at the Jiangsu Xiangshui Tianjiayi Chemical Co., Ltd.

In the judgment, seven defendant entities and 53 individual defendants were sentenced in accordance with the law.

At around 14:48 on 21st March, 2019, a spontaneous explosion occurred involving illegally stored nitrification waste at Tianjiayi Chemical Co., Ltd., whose business license was revoked immediately after the accident, located in the Xiangshui County Ecological Chemical Industry Park, Yancheng City, Jiangsu Province. The explosion was caused by continuous heat accumulation and rising temperature, resulting in 78 deaths, 76 serious injuries and 640 hospitalizations, as well as direct economic losses of Yuan1.9863507 billion.

Based on the facts, circumstances, harmful consequences, status and role of the defendants in the joint crime, while considering whether they surrendered or not, pleaded guilty or accepted punishment, the court made the first trial judgment in accordance with the law as follows:

Zhang Qinyue (Former General Manager and Legal Representative of Tianjiayi Chemical) committed the crime of illegal storage of dangerous substances, the crime of environmental pollution and the entity crime of offering bribes, while being refused probation and also being punished by the former crime of environmental pollution. Zhang was sentenced to 20 years in prison and the curtailment of political rights for five years, while being fined Yuan1.55 million.

Nijiaxiang Group was fined Yuan20 million for the crime of illegal storage of dangerous substances. Wu Yuezhong and Ni Chengliang, who were the group’s former and current chairman, general manager and legal representative, were sentenced to 12 years and 13 years in prison, respectively, and were deprived of their political rights.

Two people, including Tao Zaiming, who were the former deputy general manager of the company, director of nitrification workshop and legal representative, were sentenced to eight years and six years in prison, respectively, for the crime of illegal storage of dangerous substances.

In addition, the local loading and unloading service, the Yancheng Environmental Monitor Center, the former director of the Xiangshui County Emergency Management Bureau as an entity, and other responsible persons who played a part in the illegal storage of the nitrification waste were also sentenced in accordance with the law.