Crown Court News

The owner and skipper of a rowing vessel has received a 12-month prison sentence after a 21-year-old was lost overboard in the middle of the Atlantic.In February 2016, Michael Johnson was swept overboard by a large wave in the North Atlantic Ocean, between the Canary Islands and Barbados, during a world record row attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean in 32 days. The seven remaining crew members on board were unable to save Johnson.Simon Chalk, owner of the rowing boat Toby Wallace…

A.P. Moller - Maersk's towage arm Svitzer has been fined £2 million ($2.4 million) in the U.K. after pleaded guilty to safely failures that led to a crewmember fatality.Svitzer Marine Ltd pleaded guilty to failing to operate a vessel safely and failing to provide a safe system of work, causing the “avoidable tragedy” of 62-year-old Ian Webb falling into the water, the U.K.'s Maritime and Coastguard Agency announced.Heard at Liverpool Crown Court on February 20, the tragic death sparked an investigation by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) which identified a number of Svitzer’s safety failures.On the evening of Webb’s death, January 27, 2019, Svitzer Marine’s tug Millgarth was cast off from the Tranmere north jetty, in the river Mersey, in storm force conditions.

Thieves have been fined nearly £250,000 after being caught by the Royal Navy plundering a World War I shipwreck.The crew of HMS Severn in 2016 found the Dutch-registered salvage ship Friendship lifting £90,000 of steel and copper stripped from the wreck of the SS Harrovian, 80 miles southwest of the Scilly Isles.The British steamer was heading from New York to Le Havre in France carrying various metals for the Allied war – including more than 1,000 tons of copper bars, worth around…

The director of a yacht management firm was cleared of manslaughter charges bought on by the death of four sailors in 2014.Four U.K. men – two in their twenties and two in their fifties – were killed when the 40-foot Cheeki Rafiki capsized in the Atlantic in May 2014 while returning across the Atlantic Ocean to Southampton from Antigua. The sailors’ bodies were never recovered.Yacht manager Doug Innes, who had been accused of failing to have the yacht properly checked ahead of its voyage and to ensure that its certification was in date for the intended trip, has been found not guilty on four charges of gross negligence manslaughter today at Winchester Crown Court.Innes along with his company Stormforce Coaching had denied all charges…

A former captain and marine pilot have each been given four months suspended sentence after pleading guilty to causing a head-on collision between a car transporter ship and a ferry on the River Humber in December 2015. Gehan Sirimanne, marine pilot, now retired and Ruslan Uromov, former captain were sentenced at Hull Crown Court on November 8 after pleading guilty to offences in connection with the collision. Ruslan Uromov was charged with conduct endangering ships, structures or individuals, contrary to section 58(2) and (5) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995. Gehan Sirimanne was charged with misconduct by pilot endangering ship, contrary to section 21 of the Pilotage Act 1987. Both pleaded guilty to these offences and sentenced to four months, suspended for 18 months.

The owner of a fishing vessel has been sentenced to 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to two charges brought by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) for the unsafe operation of a fishing vessel and failing to ensure that the gas cooker was properly maintained. Timothy Bowman-Davies from Milford Haven was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment at Leeds Crown Court on August 2, after two crew members on board his fishing vessel Eshcol died from carbon monoxide poisoning in 2014.

U.K. skipper Alexander Baird, who pleaded guilty to a charge of not operating his ship in a safe manner, has been sent to prison following a hearing April 21 at Mold Crown Court, where he received a custodial sentence totaling nine months. Baird admitted the charge which covered a number of deficiencies found on his fishing vessel, St Amant. Baird was skipper of the vessel between November 2007 and April 2012. During that period St Amant was inspected on nine occasions and a number of problems found. These included safety equipment not working or not ready for immediate use, cluttered deck, failure to brief crew on emergency procedures or holding drills and making sure they had taken legally-required safety courses.

A commercial diver has pleaded guilty at Southampton Crown Court to a fraud offence in excess of £46,000 following a two year investigation by the U.K. Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA). The diver, Vincent Woolsgrove of Ramsgate, Kent, reported finding five cannons during the summer 2007, two from the wreck of the warship, London, and three in international waters off the coast of Kent. The cannons recovered from the warship were both very rare bronze Peter Gill and commonwealth cannons.

A tugboat owner was given an eight-month custodial sentence after his crew member died trying to reattach a tow line in a violent storm. Martin Richley, owner and skipper of 9.5m Medway tugboat Endurance, pleaded guilty to offences under the Merchant Shipping Act at a hearing today at Southampton Crown Court. Richley was charged with being the captain of a vessel put his crew at risk of serious injury/death and as the owner his operations were unsafe under sections 58 and 100 of The Merchant Shipping Act. On February 3, 2013 the Endurance began to tow 60ft motor cruiser Sirus M from the River Medway to Brighton on the south coast of England. Richley was acting as skipper on board the Endurance along with Steven Trice as the crew.

The operator of a Portsmouth-based barge has today been made to pay almost £111,000 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to a breach of maritime legislation. Serco Ltd. admitted an offence at Portsmouth Crown Court in relation to the health and safety of workers aboard the barge 1706, which is operated as part of a service contract with the U.K. Ministry of Defense. The primary function of the barge is to collect waste products from naval vessels when they were moored in Portsmouth. On July 6, 2011, barge 1706 was secured alongside a warship at Portsmouth Naval Base and was taking waste water from the vessel. A short while later, the crew started to smell the distinctive 'rotten eggs' odor of hydrogen sulphide (H2S).

A Cardiff sailing club and its Chief Instructor has today been made to pay £67,000 in fines and costs after failing to take proper care of children attending one of their courses, the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said. The Chief Instructor, Nicholas Sawyer has also been given 180 hours of Community Service. Penarth Motor Boat and Sailing Club, trading as Cardiff Bay Yacht Club, and its Chief Instructor Nicholas Sawyer pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to charges relating to failures in their duty of care for children attending a residential course in October 2010. The four-day sail training event was attended by 24 girls aged between 10 and 14. On the evening of 27 October 2010, after a day’s training, the girls were taken ice skating.

The operator of a coaster ship which grounded in an environmentally sensitive area off the Northumberland coast has been ordered to pay nearly £73,000 in fines and costs after its crew failed to keep a proper lookout. On the evening of March 15, 2013, the MV Danio left Perth, in Scotland, with a cargo of logs, destined for Ghent, in Belgium. The Master was on watch until around midnight when he handed over to the Chief Officer, who had contracted an eye infection after handling a previous ‘dusty’ cargo.

At a hearing today at Truro Crown Court, the owner/skipper of a fishing boat was handed a 28 day prison sentence - suspended for two years - and ordered to pay £500 in costs after pleading guilty to breaches of the International regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea. Between January 8, 2013 and June 3, 2013 Dean James Rollason was observed on five occasions operating a fishing vessel without navigation lights at night. The incidents occurred in the Fowey River, River Camel estuary, Penryn River and off Looe in Cornwall. Several agencies reported the sightings to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) who instigated legal action after reviewing the evidence. Four of the offences were committed in a small fishing vessel Top Dog, owned by Rollason.

His Honour Judge Elwen at Truro Crown Court sentenced George Pill Sr., 61, to six months jail for each of the two offenses he plead guilty to and costs of £8,500. On the 22nd August 2008 a Surveyor from the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) was conducting an audit on the small Class V passenger vessel, the Haven Rose in the port of Falmouth. It became apparent that the vessels liferaft was overdue for servicing and the hydrostatic release unit (HRU) was past its expiry date. The Surveyor found the serial number of the liferaft had been obliterated and servicing data was attached to the label using yellow embossed Dymo tape instead of the normal black printed lettering on white tape. Further enquiries showed that the liferaft should have been serviced in December 2007.

In the UK’s Snaresbrook Crown Court on Nov. 19, Captain Gonchar Volodymyr aged 53, was sentenced to two months in jail, and will be deported upon completion of the sentence after pleading guilty to being the Master of a ship whilst being over the alcohol limit. On the 4th November 2008, Gonchar Volodymyr, a Ukrainian, was Master of the Cypriot registered chemical tanker; Elousa Trikoukiotisa bound for London from Rostock in Northern Germany. The vessel was laden with Ammonium Nitrate in liquid form and had a crew of 15 on board.

At a hearing at Salisbury Crown Court, Mark Goodwin, a 25 year old Weymouth man pleaded guilty to riding his Yamaha Wave Runner in contravention of Section 58 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995. Prior to this the judge had been asked to rule on whether the Personal Watercraft was a ship in terms of the Merchant Shipping Act. In his ruling Mr Recorder A Davies QC concluded that it was indeed a ship and that the legislation applied. This prosecution followed a joint investigation by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and Dorset Police Marine Section into a collision on Saturday 15 May 2004 off of Bowleaze Cove in Weymouth during which the rider of another Personal Watercraft, Paul Facer, also from Weymouth sustained serious head injuries.

The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has stated that the master of freighter was convicted on his plea of operating his ship while under the influence of alcohol. After finding that its powers were insufficient for the seriousness of the offence, the Magistrates Court transferred the case to the Crown Court for sentencing.

The Polish chief officer of a cargo vessel that ran aground off the coast of Scotland reportedly admitted that he was drunk at the time. Jerzy Pawluk pleaded guilty to being drunk in charge of the Bahamian-registered freighter Roustel and endangering the lives of his crew. Magistrates referred the matter to Newcastle Crown Court, saying that only a prison sentence would be appropriate. The offense - conduct endangering ships, structures or individuals - carries a jail term of up to two years and a fine. He was ordered held on bail. The Roustel ran aground in the early hours of Tuesday morning off the east coast of Scotland between Arbroath and Montrose. After being alerted by the crew, coastguards pulled the 892 gross ton vessel off the rocks. No injuries were reported.