Other three Palladiy crew members will be sent to Russia
A shipowner has no money on crew maintenance, said Nikolai Sukhanov, the chairman at the SUR's Far Eastern Regional Organization (SUR FERO). Therefore, three of five crew members, remaining on Palladiy, is planned to be sent to Russia till the week end.
Previously, Nikolai Sukhanov reported that there weren’t wage arrears on the shipboard. Every repatriated seafarer was paid money assigned in a contract and seafarers who was remaining on Palladiy got the salaries.
15-man crew Palladiy was detained at Busan, South Korea, on wage debt-ground. After four-month berthing at the port, a captain attempted to leave Korea without clearance in late August. The national coast guard supported by a helicopter-borne operation detained and returned the vessel into the port. The shipowner, stayed at the board meanwhile, and also the captain, a chief engineer and a seaman were placed under pretrial detention. The South Korean court accused them of putting up a resistance and a punishment evasion. The seafarers deny their guilty.
According to Nikolai Sukhanov, previously the court placed the ship under the guarding of a Korean company, which would maintain the ship. The next hearing on the Russians' case is scheduled during which the coast guard personnel detained Palladiy would be questioned.
“The shipowner has no money to maintain remaining five crews, to buy the shore power supply and provisions. Currently, the consulate takes all attempts to repatriate three seafarers. Appropriate documents are being prepared. Other two seafarers staying at the shipboard were included in a defendants' list and, subsequently, there are six defendants instead of four. These two crew members will be moved in a hotel or another place where they will wait the court hearing,” told Nikolai Sukhanov quoting Roman Bykov, Russian consul in Busan.