Two Greek shipping companies have been sentenced for violating U.S. environmental laws after illegally discharging oily waste into the sea and falsifying records to cover up the pollution. The charges stem from two separate U.S. port calls by the Motor Tanker Kriti Ruby, a Greek-registered oil tanker, which concealed illegal discharges of bilge water from the vessel to the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG).
Avin International Ltd. and Kriti Ruby Special Maritime Enterprises, which own and operate the Kriti Ruby, both pleaded guilty to violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), falsifying records, and obstruction of justice. The companies were ordered to pay a criminal fine of $3.375 million and a $1.125 million community service payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Additionally, both companies will serve five years of probation, during which they will be subject to environmental compliance plans and ongoing monitoring.
The charges stem from two illegal discharges that occurred in May and September 2022 during the Kriti Ruby’s port calls to Jacksonville, Florida, and the Sewaren Terminal in Newark, New Jersey. During these calls, crew members presented false records to the USCG, attempting to conceal the illegal discharge of oily bilge water from the vessel. The companies also pleaded guilty to obstruction charges related to falsifying documents during the September port call.
The Kriti Ruby’s former chief engineer, Konstantinos Atsalis, was sentenced to time served and fined $5,000 after admitting to his role in concealing the pollution and falsifying records. Atsalis previously pled guilty to discharging oily waste from the vessel and directing crew members to hide the pollution by falsifying the ship’s oil record book. He admitted that the vessel’s crew had intentionally bypassed required pollution prevention equipment by using the ship’s sewage system to dispose of oily waste into the ocean.
Chief Engineer Konstantinos Atsalis, 56, pleaded guilty to two counts of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS). Atsalis admitted that the vessel’s crew had knowingly bypassed required pollution prevention equipment by discharging oily waste from the vessel’s engine room through its sewage system into the sea, including near a petroleum offloading facility in Sewaren. Atsalis also admitted that he falsified the vessel’s oil record book (ORB) – a required log regularly inspected by the U.S. Coast Guard – by failing to record this illegal activity. Atsalis further admitted that he directed crew members to hide equipment used to conduct transfers of oily waste from the engine room bilge wells to the sewage tank before the Coast Guard boarded the vessel.
The Kriti Ruby’s second engineer, Sonny Bosito, was also sentenced to time served for his involvement in the cover-up. Bosito pled guilty to presenting false records to the USCG and directing crew members to conceal equipment used in the illegal discharge of oily waste before the Coast Guard’s inspection.
“Prioritizing profits over the environment by discharging oily waste into the sea and then trying to cover up that pollution is illegal,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “We are committed to enforcing the law and fighting against maritime pollution.”
Philip R. Sellinger, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey, emphasized the severe environmental damage caused by maritime pollution. “Maritime pollution is extremely harmful to the environment, and so difficult to detect, especially when the polluters take elaborate steps to falsify records to conceal their crimes,” he said.
Rear Admiral Michael E. Platt, Commander of the USCG’s First District, also condemned the actions. “This case is a clear demonstration of our commitment to enforcing critical domestic oil pollution laws,” Platt said. “We urge the public to report any suspicions of similar illegal activity onboard vessels directly to the Coast Guard Investigative Service.”
The Kriti Ruby is a Greek-registered oil tanker owned by Avin International Ltd. and operated by Kriti Ruby Special Maritime Enterprises. Between May and September 2022, crew members aboard the vessel discharged oily waste directly into the sea, bypassing the required pollution prevention equipment, including the ship’s oily water separator. The discharges were not recorded in the Kriti Ruby’s oil record book, as required by law.
To make detection more difficult, the crew concealed pumps and hoses used for the bypass operation in a sealed void space known as a “cofferdam.”
As part of his guilty plea, Atsalis admitted to falsifying the ship’s oil record book and directing the concealment of equipment used for illegal discharges. He also acknowledged that the crew knowingly bypassed pollution control systems by discharging oily waste from the engine room into the ocean via the sewage system.
Bosito, the second engineer, admitted to helping conceal the illegal activity and ensuring that a false oil record book was presented during the USCG’s inspection.
