Charges laid over factory fire

Prosecutors in Shantou, Guangdong province, have laid charges against Liu Shuangyuan relating to a fire he allegedly set in an underwear factory in early December, sources with the Guangdong Provincial Procuratorate said on Tuesday.

Liu, a 26-year-old man from Hunan province, was detained earlier this month in neighboring Puning city for allegedly setting the fire out of revenge for his wages being delayed, local police said.

The blaze on Dec 4 in an underwear factory in the Chaonan district of Shantou killed 14 workers younger than 20, with another seriously injured.

The lawsuit was filed to Shantou Intermediate People's Court. The date of the hearing is yet to be confirmed.

Earlier, sources with the local government said all families of victims had signed compensation agreements and the injured worker had left hospital.