The U.S. military has rejected a South Korean court order for one of its American civilian employees to stand trial. Albert McFarland is charged with dumping toxic chemicals into the Han River.
A bailiff from the Seoul District Court visited the military headquarters in central Seoul to deliver the court summons for McFarland.
The U.S. military refused to accept the summons, saying the Status of Forces Agreement between Washington and Seoul allows the U.S. side to have jurisdiction over the McFarland case.
Seoul claims that the agreement allows South Korea jurisdiction over the case because McFarland is a civilian.
McFarland was accused of ordering the dumping of 24 gallons of formaldehyde into the Han River ... a main source of drinking water for 12 million people in Seoul early last year.
The case became known to the South Korean public after one of McFarland's Korean subordinates at an American military mortuary reported it to a local environmental group. The case triggered anti-American protests across the nation.
Environmentalists say formaldehyde can cause cancer after long exposure and can kill aquatic creatures when dissolved in water.