Greek Coastguards Face Charges Over Deadly 2023 Migrant Shipwreck

 

Nearly two years after one of the deadliest migrant shipwrecks in recent Mediterranean history, 17 members of the Greek coastguard have been formally charged over their alleged role in the tragedy. The case stems from the June 14, 2023, sinking of the overcrowded Adriana fishing vessel off the coast of Pylos, Greece, an incident that may have claimed up to 650 lives.

 

 

The Adriana had departed from Libya, bound for Italy, with an estimated 750 people aboard. Only 104 people survived. It is believed that many of the deceased, including women and children, were trapped below deck when the vessel went down in the early hours of the morning. The boat capsized in international waters, but within an area designated as part of Greece’s search and rescue zone.

 

 

On Monday, the Deputy Prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court announced that 17 coastguard personnel, including high-ranking officers, are to face criminal charges. Among those charged is the captain of the LS-920 coastguard ship, who stands accused of causing a shipwreck that led to the deaths of “at least 82 people,” the number of bodies recovered. However, the total number of fatalities is believed to be much higher.

More than 300 Pakistani migrants have died in a boat accident in Greece.

Witness accounts suggest between 600 and 750 people had been on the fishing boat which capsized on Wednesday morning. pic.twitter.com/RiBOXOmVo5

— Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) June 17, 2023

 

Other senior officials, including the then-Chief of the Coast Guard and the Supervisor of the National Search and Rescue Coordination Centre, have been charged with "exposing others to danger." The captain of the LS-920 also faces charges of “dangerous interference of maritime transport” and “failure to provide assistance.” The rest of the crew members are charged with “simple complicity” in the captain’s alleged actions.

 

The Greek authorities have consistently denied the allegations. However, multiple survivor testimonies and investigations by international media, including the BBC, have cast serious doubt on the official version of events. “It has taken us two years just for these charges to come, even though so many people witnessed what happened,” said Ahmad, a Syrian survivor of the wreck who is now living in Germany. “I’m very happy they are eventually being held accountable for all that they have committed, but until I see them in prison nothing has been done yet,” he added. “To be honest, the Greek legal system is very unreliable.”

 

Ahmad and another Syrian man, Musaab, told reporters shortly after the disaster that the coastguard caused the boat to capsize during a failed attempt to tow it. “They attached a rope from the left,” Musaab recalled. “Everyone moved to the right side of our boat to balance it. The Greek vessel moved off quickly causing our boat to flip. They kept dragging it for quite a distance.” Once brought ashore in Kalamata, they claimed survivors were warned not to speak about what had happened.

 

“When people replied by saying the Greek coastguard was the cause, the official in charge of the questioning asked the interpreter to tell the interviewee to stop talking,” Ahmad said. He remembered officials shouting: “You have survived death. Stop talking about the incident. Don’t ask more questions about it.”

 

Legal representatives for the victims have welcomed the charges. In a joint statement, the legal team said: “Almost two years after the Pylos shipwreck, the prosecution and referral to main investigation for felonies of 17 members of the Coast Guard, including senior officers of its leadership, constitutes a substantial and self-evident development in the course of vindication of the victims and the delivery of justice.”

 

The 17 coastguard members are expected to be questioned by the Deputy Prosecutor in the coming weeks. A court will then determine whether to proceed to a full trial or drop the charges. The specific sentences they could face, if convicted, remain unclear.

 

Greece has repeatedly emphasized its commitment to human rights, telling the BBC that its Coast Guard has rescued more than 250,000 people at sea in the past ten years. However, this case may prove to be a pivotal test of how those principles are applied when the actions of rescuers themselves come under legal and moral scrutiny.

 

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from BBC  2025-05-28

 

 

Sad 😞 

Yes , sad that they face charges.

You want to come , do it at your own risk.

The fact that the survivors were told to shut up means that the coastguard knew they had done wrong.

If the coastguards had refused to try to assist a dangerously overloaded boat, they undoubtably would have been condemned!
We have been given very little detail, but it seems to me that the safety of the passengers is the responsibility of the Captain of the fishing vessel. Should there even be passengers on a fishing vessel?