The authorities of Denmark on Tuesday reportedly charged a 30-year-old Scotline officer with negligent manslaughter over a massive cargo vessel collision in 2021, with the “aggravating” factor that the suspect had been drunk while on watch.

Two members of the Karin Høj crew were reported dead after the freighter had collided on 13 December with the British Scot Carrier in the Baltic Sea off southern Sweden. It had capsized without being sunk. The anonymous British seaman was serving as the duty mate on the Scot Carrier, per the Danish authorities.

The Briton was charged for failing to extend help to the crew of the Danish-flagged Karin Høj. He had been arrested soon after the collision by the Swedish police. In February, he was extradited to Denmark. He has since remained in pre-trial custody and is supposed to face a trial later in June 2022 in Copenhagen.

The cargo vessels collided in Sweden toward the south of Ystad, near the island of Bornholm, leaving the seamen missing. A search and rescue operation by sea and air helped locate the bodies.

Reference: pressandjournal.co.uk

Background:

One Of The Vessels Involved In Collision Off Swedish Coast Starts Sinking

December 16, 2021: A Danish vessel that collided off the Swedish coast, leaving behind one dead crew member and one more missing, has begun taking on water. It is likely to sink soon, the Swedish Coast guard reported on Wednesday… Click here to read the full story