The Dubai Court of Cassation upheld two previous rulings by the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal that the shipowner was acquitted of causing the death of three sailors, after colliding with a breakwater in the Palm Deira.

Investigations reported that the ship (a tanker) was subjected to a strong storm, which hit a breakwater, and three sailors fell into the sea, and they were trapped between the ship and the fracture, so they declared their loss until their bodies were found, while three others who were on the same ship survived, after they managed to jump From them before the collision.

The Public Prosecution accused the ship's owner of causing the deaths of the three sailors, as a result of not meeting the necessary safety requirements.

The defendant said that he sold the ship to a Gulf woman since 2014, but did not pay the required amount in full, and he filed a lawsuit against it. On this basis, a court order was issued to freeze the ship's activity until the dispute between the two parties was resolved, and it was prevented from entering the Emirati waters, so it stopped at a distance of five miles Freedom from Palm Deira.

He added that he was providing the crew on board the ship, which consists of six people, with food, drink and wages since the decision to stop its activity, until he received the news of the ship's sinking after it collided with the breakwaters and the death of three of its crew members, so he immediately called the authorities involved in marine accidents, pointing Until the ship was equipped with safety tools, it includes two rescue boats and 20 life rafts.

For its part, the woman who disputed the ownership of the ship said in the police inference minutes that the owner of the ship changed his mind after agreeing to the sale, and refused to receive the rest of the amount, and accused her of not paying the required amount, which led her to file a lawsuit against him.

An investigation conducted by the Dubai Maritime City Authority stated that the crew on board the vessel did not have the full technical expertise to qualify to deal with the accident, and that the main engine was out of order.

The court attributed its decision of acquittal to several reasons, including stopping the ship in this place for reasons related to problems between the owners, and the defendant did not enter into that, because it is an administrative procedure, in addition to confirming the report of the Dubai Maritime City Authority that the accident occurred as a result of force majeure, due to the force of the wind, and what This was accompanied by a strong storm that caused the waves to rise to more than four meters.

The Court of First Instance reported in the merits of its ruling that it stood on the merits of the case in all its details and ruled that the accused was acquitted because of her suspicion of the truth of the charge being attributed to her.

The court also rejected the civil lawsuit, but the public prosecutor appealed the ruling in two subsequent stages, and the Appeals Court upheld the acquittal on the first appeal, and the Court of Cassation upheld the ruling regarding the second appeal.

Bad judgment

The reasons for the trial court ruling stated that it was proven by the definitive technical evidence that the sailors had to remain on board the ship being the safest place during those circumstances, but they jumped to the sea on the instructions of the captain because of his misjudgment of the situation and the panic that befell him and his colleagues as a result of his death He and two other sailors are trapped between the ship and breakwaters, with which it causes him - wrongly - causing his death and the other victims. In addition, the ownership of the ship has been transferred from the accused to another owner, so it is no longer obligated to maintain, withdraw and lift it and what it deserves to the crew. As stated in the defense note, the responsibility of the owner of the ship or the legal control thereof, or the presence of any supervisory or supervisory role, and his commitment throughout the period of the ship stopping By providing her crew of six with food and drink.

The crew members on board the ship did not have the technical expertise to qualify for handling the accident.