Busan , South Korea ( CNN ) -- A South Korean court on Thursday sentenced the captain of a Chinese fishing boat to 30 years in prison for murdering a South Korean coast guard officer during a confrontation in the Yellow Sea last year . The court in the port of Incheon also handed down prison terms to several other crew members of the Chinese vessel , which the South Korean coast guard officials boarded on December 12 because they suspected it of fishing illegally . The skipper of the fishing boat , Cheng Dawei , was convicted of stabbing the coast guard officer , Lee Cheng-ho , several times with a knife . Lee later died of his injuries and another coast guard official was wounded in the encounter . Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for Cheng , 43 , but the court chose to give him a lengthy prison term and a fine of 20 million won , or about $ 17,500 . Nine other Chinese sailors received sentences of one and a half to five years for their roles in the clash , according to Judge Rho Jong-chan , a spokesman for the court . Liu Weimin , a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs , said Thursday that China and South Korea had not agreed upon the demarcation of exclusive economic zones in the Yellow Sea . As a result , he said , China `` does not accept '' South Korea 's application of its law to reach `` such a verdict . '' Speaking at a regular news conference , Liu said China would continue to follow the case closely and `` provide necessary assistance to the Chinese citizens concerned to protect their legitimate rights and interests . '' At the time of the confrontation , Seoul asked Beijing to `` strictly clamp down on illegal fishing and the illegal acts of Chinese fishermen . '' The Yellow Sea , which contains important fishing and crab grounds , has been a point of contention for several Asian countries , most notably North and South Korea who have long disagreed on whose waters end where . The South Korean coast guard stopped hundreds of Chinese boats last year on suspicion of illegal fishing in the sea . Disputes over fishing rights have resulted in dozens of boat seizures . CNN 's Chi-Chi Zhang in Beijing contributed to this report .
NEW : China says it does n't accept South Korea applying its law in this area . Chinese fishermen clashed with South Korean coast guards last year . The captain of the Chinese boat stabbed a coast guard officer to death . A South Korean court has sentenced the captain to 30 years in prison for murder .