In connection with the illegal disposal of a scrap ship, the Kiel public prosecutor is investigating three people in charge of the Hamburg shipping company Peter Döhle Schiffahrts-KG.
As intermediary brokers, you are said to have helped bring the container ship of a Rendsburg company to Alang in India for scrapping.
There discarded ships are dismantled under often questionable working and environmental conditions.
A spokesman for the public prosecutor's office in Kiel confirmed the investigation on Wednesday, but did not name any names.
According to research by the NDR and the "Süddeutsche Zeitung", it is said to be the owners of the shipping company, Jochen and Christoph Döhle, and the managing director Gaby Bornheim.
Bornheim has also been President of the Association of German Shipowners (VDR) since December.
According to EU law, ships that are ready for the scrap heap are classified as hazardous waste, which normally cannot be exported directly from the European Union.
In addition to India, popular destinations for shipping companies include the beaches in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The ships are often brought to South Asia in a roundabout way and thus appear to be legal.
Scrapping there is particularly lucrative for shipping companies because scrap prices are higher.
cooperation with the authorities
The shipping company did not want to comment, referring to an ongoing investigation.
"We can assure you that we are interested in a complete clarification of the allegations made against us and that we are fully cooperating with the investigative authorities," she said in writing when asked by the dpa.
In principle, the VDR does not want to comment on matters of member companies.
"However, it is important for us to state that against Dr.
Bornheim is not determined in her capacity as President of the VDR," emphasized the association.