- Captain and three other crew members charged with murder, prosecutor says
- The four could face death penalty if convicted
- 11 other crew members also face charges of abandonment
Seoul, South Korea (CNN) -- The captain and three other crew members of the Sewol, the South Korean ferry that sank last month, have been charged with murder, chief prosecutor in the investigation Yang Joon-jin said Thursday.
The captain, Lee Joon-seok, along with the chief engineer, and the first and second mates, could face the death penalty if convicted of the charges. But it has been nearly two decades since the capital punishment was last carried out in South Korea.
The remaining 11 crew members have been indicted on charges of abandonment and violating a ship safety act.
The prosecutor's office said the captain and three crew members were charged with murder, because they didn't use the ship's facilities at their disposal -- such as life rafts, life vests and announcements to evacuate passengers.
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South Korean President Park Geun-hye weeps while delivering a speech to the nation about the sunken ferry Sewol at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, May 19. More than 200 bodies have been found and nearly 100 people remain missing after the ferry sank April 16 off South Korea's southwest coast. 
A girl in Seoul, South Korea, holds a candle during a service paying tribute to the victims of the sunken ferry Sewol on Wednesday, April 30. 
People pay tribute to victims at a memorial altar in Ansan, South Korea, on Tuesday, April 29. 
A police officer holds an umbrella for a relative of a missing ferry passenger Monday, April 28, in Jindo, South Korea. 
South Korean Buddhists carry lanterns in a parade in Seoul on Saturday, April 26, to honor the memory of the dead and the safe return of the missing. 
Divers search for people in the waters near Jindo on April 26. 
People in Ansan attend a memorial for the victims on April 26. 
A diver jumps into the sea near the sunken ferry on Friday, April 25. 
A relative of a passenger weeps while waiting for news of his missing loved one at a port in Jindo on April 25. 
People attend a memorial for the victims at the Olympic Memorial Hall in Ansan on Thursday, April 24. 
Yellow ribbons honoring the victims flap in the wind as a hearse carrying a victim's body leaves Danwon High School in Ansan on April 24. Most of the people on board the ferry were high school students on their way to the resort island of Jeju. 
People attend a memorial for the victims at Olympic Memorial Hall in Ansan. 
Search personnel dive into the sea on Wednesday, April 23. 
Flares light up the search area on Tuesday, April 22. 
The sun sets over the site of the sunken ferry on April 22. 
A relative of a ferry passenger prays as she waits for news in Jindo on April 22. 
The search for victims continues April 22 in the waters of the Yellow Sea. 
Rescue workers in Jindo carry the body of a passenger on Monday, April 21. 
Divers jump into the water on April 21 to search for passengers near the buoys that mark the site of the sunken ferry. 
A relative of a passenger looks at the lists of the dead on April 21. 
Search operations continue as flares illuminate the scene near Jindo on Sunday, April 20. 
Relatives of missing passengers grieve April 20 in Jindo. 
Relatives of passengers look out at the sea from Jindo on April 20. 
A relative of a missing passenger struggles with a policeman as he tries to march toward the presidential house in Jindo on April 20 to protest the government's rescue operation. 
Police officers in Jindo stand guard Saturday, April 19, to prevent relatives of the ferry's missing passengers from jumping in the water. Some relatives said they will swim to the shipwreck site and find their missing family members by themselves. 
Family members of missing passengers hug as they await news of their missing relatives at Jindo Gymnasium on April 19. 
South Korean Navy Ship Salvage Unit members prepare to salvage the sunken ferry and search for missing people on April 19. 
Oil from the sunken ferry appears near the wreckage site on April 19. 
Lee Joon Suk, the captain of the Sewol, is escorted to the court that issued his arrest warrant Friday, April 18, in Mokpo, South Korea. 
Offshore cranes wait near buoys that mark the location of the sunken ferry on April 18. 
A U.S. helicopter takes off from the flight deck of the USS Bonhomme Richard during search-and-rescue operations on April 18. 
A woman cries as she waits for news on missing passengers April 18 in Jindo. 
A searchlight illuminates the capsized ferry on Thursday, April 17. 
The ship's captain, Lee Joon Suk, arrives at the Mokpo Police Station in Mokpo on April 17. His head and face covered, he broke down in tears when reporters asked whether he had anything to say. 
A woman cries during a candlelight vigil at Danwon High School in Ansan, South Korea, on April 17. 
Rescue personnel dive April 17 during search operations. 
Family members of passengers aboard the sunken ferry gather at a gymnasium in Jindo on April 17. 
The body of a victim is moved at a hospital in Mokpo on April 17. 
Relatives of a passenger cry at a port in Jindo on April 17 as they wait for news on the rescue operation. 
South Korean coast guard members and rescue teams search for passengers at the site of the sunken ferry on April 17. 
A relative of a passenger cries as she waits for news on Wednesday, April 16. 
Rescue teams and fishing boats try to rescue passengers on April 16. 
Relatives check a list of survivors April 16 in Jindo. 
Relatives of missing ferry passengers wait for news at a gym in Jindo. 
Rescue crews attempt to save passengers from the ferry on April 16. 
A South Korean coast guard helicopter lifts passengers off the vessel on April 16. 
Police and rescue teams carry a passenger at the port in Jindo on April 16. 
A relative waits for a missing loved one at the port in Jindo. 
Parents at Danwon High School search for names of their children among the list of survivors. Ansan is a suburb of Seoul, the South Korean capital. 
Helicopters hover over the ferry as rescue operations continue April 16. 
A man in Seoul watches a news broadcast about the sinking vessel. 
Officials escort rescued passengers April 16 in Jindo. 
A passenger is helped onto a rescue boat on April 16. 
A passenger is rescued from the sinking ship on April 16. Photos: South Korean ferry sinks Seven crew members were first to flee the ship, instead of carrying out their responsibility to save the hundreds that remained inside the ferry, the office said. Passengers were instructed not to move and to stay in place as the ferry listed.
The Sewol ferry sank en route to Jeju Island on April 16, killing 284 people and leaving 20 others still missing. Most of the passengers were students on a school field trip.
Obstacles in search efforts
South Korean officials have recovered 242 bodies found inside the ferry and 42 outside the ship.
The maritime police expects search efforts to become more difficult as the currents could strengthen over the next three days. Operations will be limited, Kim Seok-kyun, head of maritime police, said during a briefing Thursday.
The internal structure of the ship, which has been submerged for a month, is becoming weaker and more prone to collapse. Authorities are looking into the possibility of cutting into the exterior of the ship to make an entrance using the cranes situated at the accident site.
Conduct during sinking
On April 16, the order to evacuate ship was never given, prosecutors said. And none of the crew were prepared to deal with an emergency situation because they had never been trained for such a scenario.
A few days after the incident, Lee initially defended his actions, saying he had not evacuated passengers because the rescue boats had not arrived yet, and the tide was strong, and the water cold.
Footage of the captain in what looks like his underwear hopping into the arms of the rescuer, while hundreds of passengers remained inside the sinking ship, infuriated South Koreans.
Lee had not been at helm of the ferry when it started to sink.
The Sewol disaster caused widespread outrage in South Korea over lax safety standards and the failure to rescue more people as the ship foundered.
Investigators are looking at the overloading, the failure to secure cargo properly, the imbalance of weight on the ferry, and a sudden turn on the ferry as possible reasons for the Sewol's sinking.
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Journalist Jung-eun Kim and CNN's Paula Hancocks reported from Seoul; CNN's Madison Park wrote from Hong Kong
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