I was wondering how the Italian trial of this shipwreck incident was going and came across this article by the Telegraph written a month ago which I thought was both interesting yet alarming and I don't recall it appearing on the forum so here it is.
Nick Squires in Rome
6:11AM GMT 12 Mar 2014
Captain Francesco Schettino of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia Photo: AP
Italian authorities are searching for the helmsman who was steering the Costa Concordia on the night it smashed into the island of Giglio after he failed to turn up for a court hearing in the trial of Capt Francesco Schettino on Tuesday.
Jacob Rusli Bin, from Indonesia, was supposed to have given evidence to the court in the Tuscan town of Grosseto but did not appear and could not be traced.
His evidence is vital for Capt Schettino, who accuses the helmsman of misunderstanding his orders in the moments before the giant cruise liner rammed into rocks off Giglio on the night of Jan 13, 2012.
The collision prompted a panicked and chaotic evacuation for the ship's 4,200 passengers and crew in which 32 people lost their lives.
Prosecutors in the trial are now searching for the former helmsman and have contacted Interpol and the Italian embassy in Jakarta, amid reports that he may be living in a village in the countryside outside the city.
Last July he negotiated a plea bargain in which he received a suspended sentence of 20 months after admitting charges of manslaughter, negligence and causing a shipwreck, in a judicial ruling that was criticised by survivors of the disaster.
The prosecution wants Rusli Bin to turn up for the next hearing in the trial, scheduled for April 14.
"A man can't just disappear like that," Capt Schettino, who is on trial for abandoning ship and multiple counts of manslaughter, told reporters in Grosseto.
"He must have an identity, a credit card, he must be somewhere. He can help establish the truth of what happened."
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Now correct me if I'm wrong but I believe Capt Schettino is under house arrest so why on earth did the Italian judiciary allow a key player such as the helmsman Rusli Bin to leave the country considering the seriousness of the incident?
For those people who relish in conspiracy theories it would be very beneficial to some of the other parties involved if he did disappear 'permanently' from the scene as I'm sure some charges may become difficult if not impossible to prosecute. What do you think?
Edit:- Apologies but I see Holly did post a small story about this but I think this one might give a little more info.
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The Indonesian helmsman of the Costa Concordia fails to turn up for a court hearing in the trial of Capt Francesco SchettinoNick Squires in Rome
6:11AM GMT 12 Mar 2014
Italian authorities are searching for the helmsman who was steering the Costa Concordia on the night it smashed into the island of Giglio after he failed to turn up for a court hearing in the trial of Capt Francesco Schettino on Tuesday.
Jacob Rusli Bin, from Indonesia, was supposed to have given evidence to the court in the Tuscan town of Grosseto but did not appear and could not be traced.
His evidence is vital for Capt Schettino, who accuses the helmsman of misunderstanding his orders in the moments before the giant cruise liner rammed into rocks off Giglio on the night of Jan 13, 2012.
The collision prompted a panicked and chaotic evacuation for the ship's 4,200 passengers and crew in which 32 people lost their lives.
Prosecutors in the trial are now searching for the former helmsman and have contacted Interpol and the Italian embassy in Jakarta, amid reports that he may be living in a village in the countryside outside the city.
Last July he negotiated a plea bargain in which he received a suspended sentence of 20 months after admitting charges of manslaughter, negligence and causing a shipwreck, in a judicial ruling that was criticised by survivors of the disaster.
The prosecution wants Rusli Bin to turn up for the next hearing in the trial, scheduled for April 14.
"A man can't just disappear like that," Capt Schettino, who is on trial for abandoning ship and multiple counts of manslaughter, told reporters in Grosseto.
"He must have an identity, a credit card, he must be somewhere. He can help establish the truth of what happened."
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Now correct me if I'm wrong but I believe Capt Schettino is under house arrest so why on earth did the Italian judiciary allow a key player such as the helmsman Rusli Bin to leave the country considering the seriousness of the incident?
For those people who relish in conspiracy theories it would be very beneficial to some of the other parties involved if he did disappear 'permanently' from the scene as I'm sure some charges may become difficult if not impossible to prosecute. What do you think?
Edit:- Apologies but I see Holly did post a small story about this but I think this one might give a little more info.
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