Pylos shipwreck: Criminal prosecution on felony charges against the current head of the Coast Guard and senior members of its leadership
Appeals by survivors of the tragic shipwreck accepted
By order of the Prosecutor of the Reviewing Court, criminal proceedings are to be brought against four senior officers of the Coast Guard, including its current chief, whose case had been shelved by the prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court, and the survivors had lodged an appeal against the shelving.
The criminal prosecution concerns a felony and other offences, specifically: a) serial exposure through failure to fulfil the legal obligation to rescue and assist persons in distress, which caused the death of the victims, b) serial exposure of other persons by failure to fulfil the legal obligation to rescue them and leave them helpless, and c) manslaughter by negligence through serial failure to fulfil legal obligations.
We would like to remind you that, on May 16, 2025, criminal proceedings were brought by the Public Prosecutor of the Piraeus Maritime Court against 17 members of the Coast Guard, including senior officers of its leadership, among whom was its former chief. The case has been referred to the competent investigating judge.
According to the order of the Prosecutor of the Reviewing Court and as pointed out by the survivors in their complaints and appeals:
“[…] it is clear that the condition of the fishing vessel Adriana was poor from the outset […] the situation gradually worsened and, as far as the passengers were concerned, these facts were confirmed and clear from the outset of the incident to all those serving in the Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) and throughout the hierarchy (involved in its management), however, no rescue or risk prevention operation was activated (the incident was not even placed on ‘alert’, i.e. at the second level of risk as provided for in the International SAR Convention) during the first phase of the incident, i.e. from 11:00 a.m. on 13-06-2023 (when the Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Center first reported the existence of the overloaded ship) until the arrival of vessel P.P.L.S.-920 in the area. […]“
Meanwhile, “[…] it can be inferred that between the fishing vessel’s new immobilization and its capsizing, there was a half-hour interval during which the JRCC did not issue an order to send a MAYDAY, adhering to its decision, throughout the management of the incident, that an immediate rescue operation was not required. In this way, critical time was lost, undermining the chances of survival of the shipwrecked, at a time when the actions of the Center and vessel PPLS 920 themselves reveal an awareness of the imminent danger of capsizing […]”
“[…] the four (4) officers […] actively participated in the management of the incident, as they were constantly and personally informed of its progress, participated in meetings to assess and plan the necessary actions, and ultimately approved (as they themselves admit) the decisions that were taken, each of them having [….] an independent legal duty to protect life at sea and, by extension, a specific legal obligation to rescue (given that they agreed to or at least shared the specific decisions that were taken), and any deviation or failure to fulfill this obligation establishes their independent criminal liability […], while, in other words, “[…] they should have realized, based on their experience, their role, their specialized knowledge, and the information available to them, that this was a vessel in distress, they failed to take the necessary and prescribed actions to classify the vessel as a vessel in distress and activate the prescribed and appropriate operational plans [such as, indicatively, Memoranda/Action Cards No. 1 ‘Vessel in Distress (Regardless of Flag) within Greek SRR’ and No. 13 ‘Major Incident’, etc.] for the rescue of those on board the vessel [….]”
It is worth noting the assessment included in the Provision regarding the cause of the capsizing and sinking of the vessel, according to which:
“[…] This version of the towing (in combination with the acceptance by the members of the vessel P.P.L.S. 920 that they used a rope – regardless of the fact that they do not admit that this was done for the purpose of towing or that it is not mentioned by those present at the JRCC on the fateful night) is more convincing and plausible, given that, on the other hand (the Coast Guard), no detailed and convincing explanation is given for the sudden (otherwise) capsizing and sinking of the fishing boat. [….] Given that the sea was calm, there were no passing commercial ships (which could have caused large waves), the sudden and massive movements of the passengers inside the fishing boat (both upwards and horizontally, to the right or left) were almost impossible (due to the overcrowding and the relative prohibition of movement, as explained above) but also unjustified, the sudden and powerful towing by the Coast Guard vessel appears to be the only possible and active cause that led the fishing boat to take (at that particular moment) the two sharp turns (to the left and right), preventing it from recovering and capsizing. […]”.
The lawyers of the organizations and collectives representing the survivors and victims of the Pylos shipwreck, as well as those who worked on and supported this case, express our satisfaction with the acceptance of the survivors’ appeals and the extension of criminal proceedings against the four senior officers of the Coast Guard, for whom the case had been closed.
The referral for preliminary investigation for felonies of 21 members of the Coast Guard, including its current and former chiefs and other senior officers, as well as the findings of the Prosecutor of the Reviewing Court, are a substantial and self-evident development in the process of vindicating the victims and delivering justice.
The organisations:
Network for the Social Support of Refugees and Migrants
Greek League for Human Rights
Greek Council for Refugees (GCR)
Initiative of Lawyers and Jurists for the shipwreck of Pylos
Refugee Support Aegean (RSA)
Legal Centre Lesvos
Statement by Eleni Spathana,
Lawyer at RSA,
representing survivors of the Pylos shipwreck
“It is of pivotal importance that the Prosecutor of the Reviewing Court has brought criminal charges against four senior officials of the Hellenic Coast Guard’s leadership, including its current Commander, for the Pylos shipwreck. This is because it is not merely a numerical expansion of the indictment; it is a prosecution that stems from a thorough examination and well-substantiated assessment of the case file, leading to the unequivocal attribution of responsibility for non-rescuing the people on board the fishing vessel who had been seeking help for 15 hours. Likewise, it identifies the Coast Guard’s responsibility for the fatal towing operation, which it determines to have been the ‘sole probable and active cause’ that led to the capsizing of the vessel and to the shipwreck that claimed so many lives.”
