LONDON — The captain of a cargo ship that collided with a U.S. tanker earlier this week, resulting in the presumed death of a crew member, appeared in a UK court on Saturday. The Russian captain, Vladimir Motin, who heads the Portugal-flagged vessel Solong, was taken into custody on charges of gross negligence manslaughter. Currently, no pleas have been lodged, and Motin is scheduled for his next court appearance at the Old Bailey on April 14.
The 59-year-old captain hails from Primorsky, St. Petersburg, and was arrested in northeast England following the incident with the MV Stena Immaculate. This U.S. military tanker, laden with jet fuel, was engaged in operations in the North Sea when the disaster unfolded. The Crown Prosecution Service has identified the crew member believed to have perished as Mark Angelo Pernia, a 38-year-old crew member from the Philippines.
Ernst Russ, the company owning the Solong, confirmed that the crew, totaling 14, comprises individuals from Russia and the Philippines. Although authorities have emphasized that there is no evidence connecting the incident to national security threats, the U.K. Marine Accident Investigation Branch is actively examining the circumstances that led the Solong to collide with the stationary tanker about 10 miles off the English coast. The investigation seeks to uncover why the ship en route from Grangemouth, Scotland, to Rotterdam, Netherlands, failed to avoid the MV Stena Immaculate.
The collision investigation is primarily spearheaded by the U.S. and Portugal, reflecting the countries under whose flags the vessels are registered. Documents from port inspections reveal that the Solong had previously failed safety checks related to steering in Ireland in July, with additional issues noted during another inspection in Scotland in October. The probes into the accident are still underway, as authorities work to piece together the details surrounding this tragic maritime incident.
