South Korean judges are set to rule on whether the captain of a ferry which sank in April, killing more than 300 people, should be sentenced to death.

Capt Lee is charged with homicide through wilful negligence

Lee Joon-seok is among 15 crew on trial over the loss of the Sewol, one of South Korea's worst maritime disasters.

Most of the dead were schoolchildren on an excursion.

Nationwide grief at the disaster was followed by outrage, with revelations of mismanagement by ferry operators and lapses in the emergency response.

Hours before the verdict, the South Korean government called off the search for bodies in the sunken vessel.

A total of 295 bodies have been retrieved by teams of divers but nine people remain unaccounted for.

Public fury

The case led to severe criticism of safety standards and of the government's handling of the rescue operation.

The South Korean coast guard is due to be disbanded and replaced with a new agency after accusations that it did not act swiftly or aggressively enough to save lives.

The disaster has been blamed on a combination of illegal redesigns, the overloading of cargo and the inexperience of the crew member steering the vessel.

Judges in the southern city of Gwangju will hand down verdicts and sentences for all 15 crew members on Tuesday.

Prosecutors have demanded the death penalty for Mr Lee, arguing that he neglected his duty, made excuses and lied.

Death sentences are rare in South Korea. There has been only one execution in the last 15 years, although there are scores of convicts on death row.

Another three crew members have been charged with murder and face life sentences. The remaining crew face lesser charges of violating maritime law, which carry prison terms of between 15 and 30 years.

The captain and many crew were among the first to leave the ship when rescue vessels arrived.

There was public fury after survivors testified that they had been told by the crew to stay put even as the boat started to sink.

At the end of the trial last month, Mr Lee said he had committed a crime for which he deserved to die - but denied that he had intended to sacrifice the lives of the passengers.

The widespread outcry over the case has led to doubts over whether the crew would get a fair hearing.

The Sewol had 476 passengers on board when it capsized and began to list off the southern coast of South Korea on 16 April. Only 172 people survived the tragedy.

A separate trial is taking place for employees of the firm that operated the ferry, Chonghaejin Marine Co.

The owner of the company and billionaire businessman Yoo Byung-eun disappeared after the disaster and was later found dead.

Source: BBC