http://www.tankeroperator.com/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=10801
A federal
grand jury in Wilmington, Delaware, returned a four-count indictment
charging Evridiki Navigation, Liquimar Tankers Management Services, and
Nikolaos Vastardis with failing to keep accurate pollution control
records, falsifying records, and obstruction of justice, the US Justice
Department (DOJ) has announced.
According to the indictment, the charges stem from the falsification of
records and other acts designed to conceal from the US Coast Guard
inspectors illegal overboard discharges of oily bilge water from the
Nigerian-flagged 2007-built Suezmax ‘Evridiki’.
On or about 11th March, 2019, Vastardis, who was the tanker’s Chief
Engineer, failed to maintain an accurate oil record book, which fully
recorded both the discharge overboard of bilge water that had
accumulated in machinery spaces, and any failure of the ship’s oil
filtering equipment.
In addition, when the ship’s pollution control equipment was inspected
by the USCG, Vastardis made false statements concerning how the
equipment was operated at sea, and demonstrated how the equipment was
operated in a manner designed to trick the equipment into reporting the
discharge of oily bilge water at permissible levels.
The vessel’s management company, Liquimar Tankers Management Services;
the vessel’s owner, Evridiki Navigation; and Vastardis were all charged
with failing to maintain an accurate oil record book as required by
MARPOL. The defendants were also charged with falsification of records,
obstruction of justice, and making false statements.
An indictment is merely an accusation and defendants are presumed
innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law, the DOJ
pointed out. Investigative Service and
is being prosecuted by Assistant US Attorney, Edmund Falgowski of the US
Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, and Joel La
Bissonniere, Trial Attorney with the DOJ’s Environmental Crimes Section.
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