WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED:
- Fearing that the two stowaways might infect them coronavirus, a ship captain and his crew left them ashore with an improvised raft.
- The stowaways were found three days later by locals and were brought to the hospital for treatment.
- The ship’s captain and his crew pleaded guilty, admitting their action could have injured or killed the two stowaways.
A freight ship Chinese captain, along with his crew, has pleaded
guilty in attempted murder charges following a decision to throw overboard two
Tanzanian runaways into an ocean said to have infested with sharks.
The captain decided to do such because they fear that the two
stowaways might infect them with coronavirus.
According to the report by the Daily Mail, the ship’s staff built a
makeshift raft out of plastic drums, rope, and plywood, and let the two
individuals get off near South Africa.
The captain, Cui Rongli, and a skipper reportedly witnessed all the
happenings.
The crew then gave each the stowaways Hassani Rajabu, 30, and Amiri
Salamu, 20, a bottle of water, and a
lifejacket, and instructed the pair to paddle with their hands to reach the
nearest shore.
It was also reported that no meals were given to the two men aboard
the rickety raft. They were reportedly cast-off near the opening of the Tugela
River, where it was said to be hunting spots hammerheads, great whites, bull, and tiger sharks.
Three days later, the pair reportedly reached the Zinkwazi Beach
adjacent to Durban.
Distressed and suffering from hunger, thirst, and hypothermia, the
stowaways were found by locals and were brought to the nearest hospital.
The cargo ship, MV Top Grace, disembarked at Richards Bay in
KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and they were impounded upon arrival by the
African Maritime Safety Agency. The captain was arrested after that.
Captain Rongli, along with his crew, Zou Yongxian, Lin Xinyong, Xu
Kun, Xie Wenbin, Mu Yong, and Tan Yian, all admitted to the act of attempted
murder on Friday at their trial on Durban Magistrates Court.
Under a plea agreement,
Rongli was slapped with $5,000
fine, while a $2,500 penalty was asked for each of the crew members.
Natasha Cara, a spokesperson for the National Police Authority, told
the Daily Mail that the defendants gave life jackets to the two men. And at the
same time, the crew displayed a threatening act by pounding the vessel’s decks
as the pair went down toward the raft.
Cara also noted the ship immediately left afterward, acknowledging
that their decisions would have caused severe harm or even claimed the life of
the two runaways.
Meanwhile, Willie Lombard, the lawyer for the accused, defended his clients by saying that several situational factors led to their action. Lombard further noted that should the ship’s crew intended to harm the pair; they would have left them afloat on high seas without life jackets.
Source: New York Post