EMEA News
Captain of Costa Concordia Sentenced to 16 Years
The captain of the Costa Concordia, the ill-fated cruse ship which went aground and sank in 2012, has been sentenced to 16 years in prison, Reuters reports.
Francesco Schettino was sentenced to 10 years for multiple manslaughter, five years for causing a shipwreck and one year for abandoning ship.
Prosecutors had reportedly wanted a sentence of 26 years for what they saw as the captain's dismal handling of the disaster, having steered the ship too close to shore and then escaped before all 4,229 passengers and crew had reached safety.
During the trial, Schettino reportedly admitted some responsibility, though denied blame for the 32 deaths which occurred.
He and Costa Cruises, a unit of Carnival Corporation, have also been ordered to jointly pay €30,000 ($34,000) to each passenger as compensation, along with millions of euros to the Italian government for environmental damage.
Carnival has already agreed to pay a €1 million ($1.1 million) fine.
Schettino however, will not immediately serve his sentence, as he still has the right to two legal appeals.
Italian authorities said that the former captain would not go to jail or be put under house arrest during the appeals process, which could take years.
The Costa Concordia took two and a half years to salvage, which involved recovering 2,300 tonnes of fuel aboard.
