American tanker captain gets 15 days’ imprisonment for alleged illegal anchoring in Indonesia

Reuters reports that the captain of a foreign-flagged commercial vessel has been sentenced to spend 15 days in prison in Indonesia following allegations of illegal anchoring in the country’s waters.

The accused, an American national, is the captain of the Panamanian-flagged product tanker Nord Joy, which Indonesian Navy officials claimed had anchored illegally in Indonesian waters just east of the Singapore Strait in late May of this year.

The vessel was detained on May 30 but was released on July 7 in compliance to a local court order. However, the same court directed that the captain be detained for 15 days and made to pay a fine equivalent to US$13,350 for the offence.

The Indonesian Navy has refuted reports that an “unofficial payment” equivalent to US$375,000 was made to ensure Nord Joy‘s release, while the Synergy Group, the tanker’s manager, said it was unaware of a request for such payment.


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