Amplify Energy to Pay $5M to Settle Criminal Charges over California Oil Spill
California officials [last] Thursday said Amplify Energy Corp agreed to plead no contest to six criminal charges and pay nearly $5 million in penalties and fines in connection with a crude oil spill last year that killed birds and fouled beaches.The announcement was the latest legal effort to hold the Texas-based oil company accountable for a subsea pipeline leak that released some 558 barrels (25,000 gallons) of crude oil into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Huntington Beach in southern California in October of last year.At a news conference broadcast live on the internet…
Texas Firm to Pay $13 Million to Settle Charges Over California Oil Spill
A Texas oil company agreed to plead guilty to criminal negligence charges and pay nearly $13 million for a crude oil spill that killed wildlife and fouled southern California beaches, federal prosecutors said on Friday.Amplify Energy Corp repeatedly turned off and on a 17-mile-long subsea pipeline when it could not determine the location of the leak, according to plea agreements filed in U.S. District Court, Central District of California.The Houston-based company and two subsidiaries each agreed to plead guilty to one count of negligently discharging oil during the October 2021, incident. The pipeline was struck by a ship's anchor.The three firms "are required to make significant improvements that will help prevent future oil spills,” Acting United States Attorney Stephanie S.
British Seafarer Gets Prison Sentence After Deadly Baltic Sea Ship Collision
A British crew member of the ship Scot Carrier has been found guilty in manslaughter and sentenced to 1.5 years in prison after a ship collision in December last year in the Baltic Sea that killed two Danish seafarers, Danish police said on Thursday.The 30-year old British man was on duty when the 55-meter (180 ft) barge Karin Hoj was in collision with the 90-meter (295 ft) Scot Carrier in fog and darkness off the Danish island of Bornholm.
Planes, Trains and Ships: Criminal Antitrust Enforcement Speeding Up for Transportation Sector
The Biden administration recently issued a sweeping Executive Order [1] aimed at protecting and enhancing competition, and the transportation sector—including air, ocean, and rail—is among the industries specifically identified and likely to see heightened antitrust scrutiny under the new directives. This executive action was soon followed by the long-awaited announcement of Biden’s pick to lead the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (Division), Jonathan Kanter, who…
Four More Sentenced In Coast Guard Test-fixing Scheme
Four more defendants have been sentenced for their roles in a test score-fixing scheme at a U.S. Coast Guard exam center, U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced.On December 8, Alonzo Williams, who plead guilty to being an intermediary in the scheme, was sentenced by the Honorable Barry W. Ashe to 40 months incarceration to be followed by three years of supervised release.Quang Tran, Harry Johson and James Carr, who each plead guilty to unlawfully receiving an officer-level mariner license…
NZ Fines Master for Leaving Port with Known Engine Problems
A cargo ship master and chief engineer have been sentenced and fined after admitting to charges relating known engine problems that led to their ship to lose power and run aground at the Port of Tauranga in July.The Singapore-registered log-carrier MV Funing lost power and passed over a channel marker with the propeller becoming caught in the markerchain, before making contact with a sand bar in the Tauranga Harbor channel.A Maritime NZ investigation and subsequent prosecution…
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Pleads Guilty to Cartel Conduct in Australia
Norwegian shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen Ocean AS pleaded guilty to charges of criminal cartel conduct in Australia’s Federal Court on Thursday, following an investigation by the country’s competition regulator.The charges relate to the transportation of vehicles, including cars, trucks and buses, to Australia between June 2011 and July 2012, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said in a statement.Wallenius Wilhelmsen was charged with cartel conduct…
Passenger Vessel Operator Fined for Reckless Operation
The company which owned Spirit of 1770, a passenger vessel that caught fire and burnt to the waterline with 42 paying customers and four crew members on board while returning from a voyage to Lady Musgrave Island on May 11, 2016, has been fined $25,000 for reckless operation of a commercial vessel.The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) investigated the incident and recommended a charge against the company, Panforta Pty Ltd – trading as 1770 Great Barrier Reef Cruises Pty Ltd. The charge was pursued by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP).On March 16, 2020, the company plead guilty in the Brisbane Magistrates court to one count of reckless operation of a commercial vessel…
DOJ: F/V Owner & Operator Fined $1 mln
Fishing Vessel Owner and Operator Plead Guilty and Fined $1 Million for Discharging Oily Waste into the Coastal Waters of the United States Sea Harvest Inc., operator of the fishing vessels Enterprise and Pacific Capes, along with Fishing Vessel Enterprises Inc., the vessels’ owner, pleaded guilty today to violating the Clean Water Act for both knowing and negligent discharges of oily bilge water from the vessels’ engine rooms. The companies were sentenced to pay a $1 million criminal fine and serve a five-year term of probation.
Former U.S. Navy Captain Pleads Guilty in Corruption, Fraud Probe
A retired U.S. Navy captain pleaded guilty to criminal conflict of interest charges and a former U.S. Navy master chief was sentenced to 17 months in prison today on corruption charges. The defendants are among the latest U.S. Navy officials to plead guilty and be sentenced in the expansive corruption and fraud investigation involving foreign defense contractor Leonard Glenn Francis and his Singapore-based ship husbanding company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA).Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Adam L.
Former MSC Contractor Sentenced in Bribery Scandal
A former contractor at the Military Sealift Command (MSC) has been sentenced to 87 months for his role in a bribery and fraud conspiracy through which he received nearly $3 million in bribes from approximately 1999 to approximately 2014.Scott B. Miserendino, Sr. plead guilty on January 24, 2018, to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services mail fraud, one count of bribery, and three counts of honest services mail fraud.Miserendino, formerly of Stafford, Va., was a government contractor at MSC, an entity of the U.S. Department of the Navy that provides support and specialized services to the Navy and other U.S. military forces. According to the plea agreement, Miserendino and Joseph P.
US Navy Commander Pleads Guilty in 'Fat Leonard' Scandal
A former commander has become the latest U.S. Navy official to plead guilty in a wide-ranging corruption and fraud investigation involving the foreign defense contractor known as “Fat Leonard”. In what has become the largest corruption scandal in U.S. Navy history, former U.S. Navy commander Troy Amundson pleaded guilty on Tuesday to conspiracy to commit bribery, admitting that he conspired with foreign defense contractor Leonard Glenn Francis, a.k.a. “Fat Leonard,” and his Singapore-based company…
Keppel O&M to Pay US$422m to Resolve Petrobras Issue
Keppel Corporation Limited (Keppel Corporation or Keppel) today confirmed that KOM has reached a global resolution with criminal authorities in the United States, Brazil and Singapore in relation to corrupt payments made by KOM's former agent in Brazil, Zwi Skornicki. As part of the global resolution, KOM has accepted a conditional warning from the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) in Singapore, and entered into a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), while Keppel FELS Brasil, a wholly-owned subsidiary of KOM, has reached a Leniency Agreement with the Public Prosecutor's Office in Brazil, the Ministério Público Federal (MPF).
Fiat Chrysler Sues Shippers over Alleged Price Fixing
The automaker wants the Federal Maritime Commission to order payments from Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics AS and its sister company EUKOR Car Carriers Inc, Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd, Compania Sud Americana de Vapores, Hoegh Autoliners AS and affiliated companies. Fiat Chrysler filed its complaint on Oct. 17. All but one of the shippers sued by Fiat Chrysler pleaded guilty and admitted to price fixing as part of a Justice Department investigation. The remaining firm, Hoegh, agreed last month to plead guilty and pay a $21 million criminal fine.
Carnival Princess to Pay Record $40 mln for Polluting the Seas
Carnival Corp's Princess Cruise Lines will plead guilty to seven felony charges for polluting the seas and deliberate acts to cover it up, and pay a record $40 million criminal penalty, the U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday. Shares of Carnival, the world's largest cruise operator, were down more than 2 percent at $50.29 in midday trading on the New York Stock Exchange after the announcement. The Caribbean Princess had been making illegal discharges since 2005 using bypass equipment - including a so-called "magic pipe" - to circumvent pollution-prevention equipment that separates oil and monitors oil levels in the ship's water, the department said.
US Navy Admiral to Plead Guilty in Bribery Case
A U.S. Navy rear admiral will plead guilty on Thursday to lying to federal investigators, making him the highest-ranking officer to be convicted in the expanding "Fat Leonard" bribery case, the Washington Post reported, citing his attorney. Robert Gilbeau, a special assistant to the chief of the Navy Supply Corps, was scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in San Diego late Thursday afternoon, the Post reported, citing court records. This would bring to 14 the number of people charged in the Singapore-based case…
Readers’ Choice: Top 10 Maritime Stories of 2015
Per usual, the year 2015 was an eventful one for the global maritime market, with a number of historical firsts and technological breakthroughs, a year fraught with triumph and tragedy, As 2015 comes to a close we look here at the 10 stores ... 10 stories from a cumulative 18,719 posted to MarineLink.com during the calendar year to date ... that were clicked on and passed along the most by you, our readers. Josh Harris and Casey McManus, stars of the Discovery' Channel's Deadliest Catch, discuss their decision to protect their vessel, Cornelia Marie, with Sherwin-Williams marine coatings.
Navy Officer Pleads Guilty to Bribery
U.S. A lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy pleaded guilty to bribery charges in federal court, admitting that he accepted cash, hotel expenses and the services of a prostitute in return for providing classified U.S. Navy ship schedules and other internal Navy information to an executive of a defense contracting firm. Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy of the Southern District of California, Deputy Inspector General for Investigations James B. Burch of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Director Andrew L. Traver of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) and Director Anita Bales of the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) made the announcement.
K-Line Executive Pleads Guilty to Price Fixing
An executive of Japan-based Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. (K-Line) was sentenced to 18 months in a U.S. prison after pleading guilty to his involvement in a conspiracy to fix prices, allocate customers and rig bids of international ocean shipping services for roll-on, roll-off cargo to and from the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced. According to the one-count felony charge filed in U.S. District Court of the District of Maryland in Baltimore on Jan. 22, 2015, Toru Otoda, who was a general manager in K-Line’s car carrier division, conspired to allocate customers and routes, rig bids and fix prices for the sale of international ocean shipments of roll-on, roll-off cargo to and from the United States and elsewhere, including the Port of Baltimore.
NYK Shipping Exec Jailed for Price Fixing
An employee of Japan-based Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) pleaded guilty today and was sentenced to 15 months in a U.S. prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to fix prices, allocate customers and rig bids of international ocean shipping services for roll-on, roll-off cargo, such as cars and trucks, to and from the United States and elsewhere, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. According to the one-count felony charge filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland in Baltimore on Jan.
Shipping Company, Chief Engineer Charged for Dumping Oil
U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that AML Ship Management GMBH, a German company, and Nicolas Sassin, Chief Engineer of a vehicle carrier ship it operated, the M/V City of Tokyo, were both charged with knowingly dumping oil into United States’ waters off the coast of Alaska in August 2014 in violation of the Clean Water Act. AML and Chief Engineer Nicolas Sassin have also been charged in separate cases filed in the District of Oregon with violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) for knowingly creating and presenting false records to the U.S. Coast Guard when it arrived in port in Portland, Oregon in September 2014. The Clean Water Act charges in Alaska and the APPS charges in Oregon are felony offenses.
Taiwanese Captain Arrested in Australia
The Australian Federal Police have arrested the captain of a Chinese coal ship -China Steel Developer- for sailing through part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park without a pilot. Sources said that the captain — a Taiwanese national by the name of Lu — will plead guilty to a charge of being the master of a ship without a pilot in the marine park, an offence that carries a maximum fine of $85,000. It is alleged that the vessel sailed through Hydrographers Passage near Mackay on New Year’s Day without a pilot, as required by Australian law. ABC News reports that the ship is believed to have carried a cargo of coal to China before returning to Australia last week. Lu was arrested on Saturday and will appear in Newcastle Court on Monday.
German Company Pleads Guilty to AK Bilge Dumping
German shipping company AML Ship Management GMBH and one of its chief engineers pled guilty yesterday to illegally discharging oily waste in Alaskan waters last August. The company and Nicolas Sassin, 45, the chief engineer of AML's City of Tokyo vehicle carrier, each plead guilty to one count of violating the Clean Water Act. They also face charges in Portland, OR, for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships. The dumping of 4,500 gallons of oil bilge water occurred 165 miles south of the Aleutian islands.