Bucheon: The driver of a truck that crashed into a crowd of people at a traditional market last year was sentenced to a prison term Monday. The 67-year-old driver was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison on charges of killing four people in the crash that occurred Nov. 13 in Bucheon, just west of Seoul. The accident had left 18 other people injured.

According to Yonhap News Agency, an investigation revealed that the man had mistakenly shifted the gear to "drive" and stepped on the accelerator instead of the brake while trying to stop the truck that was already in motion, as he earlier exited the vehicle with its gear left in "reverse." "Multiple lives have been lost due to the accident," the Bucheon branch of the Incheon District Court said in its ruling.

The court noted that the defendant admitted his wrongdoing and reached a settlement with the bereaved families of three out of the four deceased victims, who subsequently do not wish for his punishment. The driver was reported to be suffering from a cerebrovascular disorder, but a medical evaluation found the condition had no direct relation to the accident.