KALAMATA, Greece — The Three Member Appeal Court of Kalamata dismissed all charges against the Pylos 9 who were wrongfully accused of causing a shipwreck that killed hundreds of migrants last year.
The sinking of the fishing vessel Adriana on June 14, 2023 was the deadliest in the Aegean and one of the deadliest shipwrecks in the Mediterranean over the past years. More than 700 people, mainly from Pakistan, Syria and Egypt are thought to have been on board when the boat capsized en route from Libya to Italy. Only 104 of the passengers survived, while the bodies of 82 victims were recovered from deep waters off the coast of Pylos, in the Peloponnese peninsula. About 600 people are still missing to this day.
Nine survivors of the shipwreck - the so called ‘Pylos 9’- were arrested hours after the tragedy and have spent the past 11 months in pre-trial detention on charges of migrant smuggling, causing a shipwreck and participating in a criminal organization.
In line with the Greek authorities’ systematic violation of migrants’ right to a fair trial, the charges against the 9 Egyptian survivors of the Pylos shipwreck were based on limited and questionable evidence which were not adequately examined. Had they been convicted, all 9 defendants would have faced multiple life sentences.
PYLOS 9 TRIAL PROCEEDINGS & VERDICT
On May 21st, the 9 defendants appeared before the Criminal Court of Appeal of Kalamata, facing a packed courtroom full of supporters.
As the trial started, the defense lawyers raised an objection to the competence of the court and argued that Greek authorities did not have jurisdiction to try this case because the incident occurred in international waters, albeit within the Greek Search and Rescue zone.
HRLP published last week a legal analysis explaining the absence of jurisdiction in the Pylos 9 case, with reference to similar cases where other courts had already acknowledged the lack of jurisdiction of Greek authorities when boats are intercepted in international waters.
Following the defense’s objection, the main prosecution witness, captain of the HCG vessel 920 was called to the stand and testified that the ‘Adriana’ never passed through Greek territorial waters and that it was in international waters when it capsized. Subsequently, the second witness -also a member of the Hellenic Coast Guard who was on board vessel 920- stated he cannot confirm whether Adriana entered Greek territory.
The Court subsequently read survivors’ testimonies which confirmed that the vessel’s destination was Italy, and proceeded to question the 9 defendants. All 9 men stated that their intention had been to travel to Italy, not Greece, several of them declaring their innocence.
Following a short recess, the prosecutor stated that since all evidence demonstrated that the boat capsized in international waters, the Greek state lacks jurisdiction to try the defendants, suggesting for the case to be dismissed. Echoing the prosecution, the Court ruled that Greece had no jurisdiction to prosecute the Pylos 9 and hence dropped all charges against them, declaring all 9 defendants innocent for the crimes of illegal transfer and illegal entry.
“The shipwreck clearly occurred in international waters […] There were no Greeks on board, it was not under a Greek flag and all the documents refer to the (vessel being) 47 nautical miles away. The jurisdiction of the Greek courts cannot be established.”, said the presiding judge.
While the verdict of the Kalamata court is a crucial step towards justice, the truth about the Adriana shipwreck is yet to come to light. This requires a thorough investigation of the responsibilities of the Greek authorities. As Dimitris Choulis, HRLP lawyer and member of the Pylos 9 defense team, stressed “Attention should now turn to how the Adriana sank. We need to make sure that nothing like that would happen again.”
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