Federal And International Law News

A ship management company has pleaded guilty and was sentenced October 27, 2015 for deliberately concealing pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea and for falsifying its oil record book, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Rear Admiral David R. Callahan, Eighth District Coast Guard Commander. Chandris (Hellas) Inc. is headquartered in Greece and operated the M/V Sestrea - an 81,502 ton cargo ship that made calls in multiple ports in Texas. Chandris pleaded guilty to a violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships for failing to properly maintain an oil record book as required by federal and international law, as well as a violation of making a false statement for making a false entry in the ship’s oil record book. Shortly following the plea, U.S.

German Shipping Companies Convicted in Texas and Alaska for Environmental Crimes; Companies to Pay $1.2 Million for Covering up Marine Oil Pollution and Obstruction of Justice. WASHINGTON – Two German shipping companies pleaded guilty today in federal court in Houston to criminal charges that they concealed the illegal dumping of oil at sea from U.S. Coast Guard inspectors. Nimmrich & Prahm Bereederung and Nimmrich & Prahm Reedrei, the operator and owner of the commercial cargo vessel M/V Susan K…

United States Attorney Donald J. Cazayoux, Jr., announced that, yesterday, CLEOPATRA SHIPPING AGENCY, LTD., a Greek vessel management company, pled guilty to violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships and was sentenced to pay a $300,000 fine and serve a three-year term of probation requiring implementation of an environmental compliance program. U.S. District Judge James J. Brady ordered that $150,000 of the fine be awarded to the CLEOPATRA employee who reported the violation to the United States Coast Guard. In pleading guilty, CLEOPATRA agreed to the following facts.

Singapore Ship Operator and Engineers Plead Guilty to Crimes Related to Pollution from Cargo Ship Traveling to Mobile, Alabama; Company Sentenced to Pay $1.2 Million Criminal Penalty. A ship management company headquartered in Singapore pleaded guilty and was sentenced today in federal court in Mobile for deliberately falsifying records to conceal pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea. Target Ship Management Pte. Ltd., the operator of the M/V Gaurav Prem, pleaded…

The operation of vessels in international commerce has never been more complicated than it is today, particularly from the standpoint of regulatory compliance. A vessel operator must be cognizant of international, national, state and local regulatory requirements. In an ideal world, the regulations of subjects such as navigation safety, crew licensure or pollution would be uniform so that an operator could understand the law and more easily comply. In cases where the requirements of one jurisdiction differ from those of another, it would certainly be helpful to know where the line of demarcation between one jurisdiction and another could be firmly drawn. The regulation of air pollution emitted from large oceangoing vessels has been the subject of an international treaty for many years.

Cooperative Success Maritime S.A., the operator of the M/T Chem Faros, a 21,145 gross-ton ocean-going cargo ship that regularly transported cargo between foreign ports and the United States, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today in federal court for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), and to making material false statements, the Justice Department announced. U.S. District Court Judge James C. Dever III for the Eastern District of North Carolina sentenced the company to pay a $850,000 penalty of which $150,000 will be paid to the congressionally-created National Fish and Wildlife Fund as a community service payment.

Aksat Denizcilik Ve Ticaret A.S., a Turkish corporation that operated the commercial ship M/T Kerim, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Tampa, Fla., to two felony counts for knowingly failing to fully and accurately maintain an oil record book, which tracks pollutant discharge, the Justice Department announced. During the hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Richard A. Lazzara sentenced the company to pay a $725,000 fine and to serve three years of probation. The court also ordered the company to implement an environmental compliance plan. Federal and international law requires that all ships comply with pollution regulations requiring…

A Panamanian company that operated a 40,000-ton oil tanker ship that regularly made calls in multiple ports in Texas pleaded guilty Oct. 21 in federal court in Houston for deliberately concealing pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea, the Justice Department announced. Styga Compania Naviera S.A., the operator of the M/T Georgios M, pleaded guilty to three felony violations of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships for failing to properly maintain an oil record book as required by federal and international law. According to a plea agreement filed with U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, the company has agreed to pay a $1m criminal fine along with a $250…

STX Pan Ocean Co. Ltd. (STX), headquartered in Seoul, Korea, and the owner of the commercial cargo ship, M/V Ocean Jade, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy as well as falsifying and failing to properly maintain records meant to ensure compliance with maritime pollution laws, the Justice Department announced. The chief engineer of the M/V Ocean Jade, Hong Hak Kang, a Korean citizen, also pleaded guilty today to failing to maintain environmental records and making false statements. STX, which faces five years probation for each of the four counts against it, has agreed to pay a $2m fine, as well as make a $200,000 community service payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Pendulum Shipmanagement Inc., a ship management company, headquartered in Greece, pleaded guilty on Jan. 13 to charges that it conspired with members of the crew of the M/V Quantum, a commercial cargo ship, to defraud the United States by falsifying the vessel’s Oil Record Book, announced Acting United States Attorney Laurie Magid. United States District Judge Berle M. Schiller immediately sentenced the company to a $1.3m fine, a $1,600 special assessment, three years of probation, and ordered the company to implement an Environmental Compliance Plan. The false entries and omissions in the Oil Record Book pertained to the improper management and disposal of oily waste and ballast containing an oily mixture by the ship.

On Nov. 10, Hiong Guan Navegacion Japan Co. Ltd., operator of the commercial cargo ship Balsa 62, agreed to plead guilty in U.S. District Court in Tampa, Fla., to conspiracy and to falsifying and failing to properly maintain records meant to ensure environmental compliance, the Justice Department announced. Specifically, Hiong Guan agreed to plead guilty for falsifying the oil record book kept on board the Balsa 62. Federal and international law requires that all ships comply with pollution regulations that include the proper disposal of oily water and sludge by passing the oily water through an oily-water separator aboard the vessel or burning the sludge in the ship’s incinerator.