In London, a Russian sailor was sentenced to six years in prison

The Central Criminal Court in London sentenced 59-year-old Russian citizen Vladimir Motin to six years in prison, convicted of manslaughter after the collision of the container ship Solong with the tanker Stena Immaculate in 2025 led to the death of a crew member, Sky News reports.

At the time of the collision, the captain of Solong, a resident of St. Petersburg Motin, was on watch alone, Interfax notes. During the hearing, he stated that he mistakenly pressed the wrong button while trying to take the ship off autopilot. His attempts to restart the steering were unsuccessful.

Judge Andrew Baker found the course of events described by Motin implausible and said that the death of the crew member could have been avoided.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the death of the crew member occurred due to the negligence of the captain.

The prosecution also noted at the hearing that all navigation systems worked properly, and therefore it was the defendant who was to blame for what happened.

Solong crew member Mark Angelo Pernia, 38, was on the bow of the container ship when the vessels collided. His body was never found.

In March 2025, it was reported that the anchored American tanker Stena Immaculate and the Portuguese-flagged container ship Solong collided off the eastern coast of Great Britain in the North Sea. 36 crew members were taken ashore, one was hospitalized, and one sailor from the container ship died.