Shipping Companies Fined $2M for Concealing Oil Discharge; Captain Sentenced to Prison

Two shipping companies were fined $2 million and placed on probation for concealing an oil discharge.Photo byImage: Tysonomo Multimedia

Two corporations that operated the motor tanker P/S Dream — Prive Overseas Marine LLC and Prive Shipping Denizcilik Ticaret — were sentenced in federal court in New Orleans to pay a $2 million criminal penalty and serve four years of probation, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday.

The companies had pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS).

The court also sentenced the P/S Dream’s captain, Abdurrahman Korkmaz, on Sept. 10 to eight months in prison for an APPS violation and for obstructing the U.S. Coast Guard’s investigation into the illegal discharge.

The charges stem from a January 2023 incident when the vessel was en route to New Orleans. Senior corporate managers were aware that Korkmaz had ordered the crew to discharge oil-contaminated waste from a tank on deck into the ocean.

The waste was pumped overboard over the course of three days, and the crew falsified the vessel’s oil record book to hide the discharge, according to the DOJ.

A crew member alerted the Coast Guard, providing videos of the oil discharge and resulting sheen. Upon the ship’s arrival in Louisiana, another crew member shared a recording of an officer discussing the illegal dumping, the DOJ says.

The falsified logs were presented to the Coast Guard during its inspection in an attempt to conceal the violation of MARPOL Annex I, an international treaty regulating oil pollution from ships.

Corporate officials at Prive Shipping were aware of the oil-contaminated waste in the tank and were informed by the ship’s master that it had been discharged overboard, according to DOJ.

The $2 million penalty includes $500,000 in organizational community service payments to fund maritime environmental projects in the Eastern District of Louisiana. The projects will be managed by the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation.

Captain Korkmaz, a Turkish national, and the two companies must comply with an environmental compliance plan, which includes audit, safety, and inspection requirements for the next four years.

Prive Overseas Marine is based in Dubai, while Prive Shipping is headquartered in Turkey.