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Appeal of Norwegian shipowner against imprisonment for illegal scrapping rejected

The Norwegian shipowner, who has previously been sentenced to prison in the 'Tide Carrier' case for illegal scrapping, has had his appeal rejected by the Norwegian Supreme Court. This puts an end to the important and principled case of scrapping ships at beach yards in South Asia. “This is an important judgment internationally and nationally. As a major maritime nation, it is important that the Norwegian authorities contribute to combating this problem. We have a duty to counteract waste problems that are caused by business in Norway, regardless of whether the damage or inconvenience occurs in or outside Norway", said the police attorney of Økokrim, Maria Bache Dahl. In March this year, the shipowner was sentenced to six months in prison by a lower court in Norway for aiding and abetting the export of waste in violation of Norwegian environmental legislation afte rthe ship crashed off the Norwegian coast on its way to Pakistan to be chopped up on the beaches at Gadani. The verdict against the shipowner is one of the first in the world where a single actor is convicted for his complicity in the scrapping of ships on the beaches of South Asia. With the Supreme Court's decision on June 9, 2022, to reject the shipowner's appeal, he must now serve his prison sentence. According to the Norwegian Environment Agency, the case has led to several shipowners applying for legal dismantling of ships. “It is very positive that the recycling of ships is increasingly taking place within the applicable legislation. We are pleased that the Tide Carrier case has helped to put this theme on the agenda and to spread knowledge about the legislation in the industry", said Maria Bache Dahl.

Prison sentence for owner confirmed

On March 23, 2022, the Gulating Lagmannsrett, an Appeal Court in the Norwegian city of Bergen, has confirmed the prison sentence for the owner of the 'Harrier' for aiding and abetting the attempt to export the ship to Pakistan for scrapping. In Nov 2020, the First Instance Sunnhordland District Court in Norway had sentenced him to six months unconditional imprisonment for having assisted the scrap dealer Wirana in an attempt to illegally export the vessel to the shipbreaking beach of Gadani, Pakistan. The Court had also ordered the confiscation of criminal dividends of NOK two million from Eide Marine Eidendom AS. Now, almost a year and a half later, the prison sentence has been confirmed, after the owner had decided to appeal the first verdict. The Court concluded, in line with the National Authority for Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime's (Okokrim), that the owner was aware that the buyer of the vessel was intending to scrap the vessel in South Asia, in violation of national and European waste rules. According to the Appeal Court, having sold the vessel to a middle man and not directly to a beaching yard does not provide for exempting the shipowner from being held liable for having committed an environmental crime.

Former shipowner sentenced to prison for illegal scrapping attempt

Georg Eide, the Norwegian owner of the 'Harrier' ex 'Tide Carrier' has been sentenced to six months in prison for illegal scrapping by the district court in Sunnhordaland. The ship had run aground south of Stavanger in 2017 shortly after departing for Gadani. The ruling means that the company Eide Marine Eiendom will have to pay two million Norwegian crowns from criminal proceedings. Eode was charged with complicity in waste exports in violation of the Pollution Control Act. The district court found that he played a central role in the work of getting the ship disposed of. The district court emphasized that there was an increasing need to protect the environment, and a generally stricter view of environmental crime. Georg Eide denied the guilt. Together with his lawyer, he was now considering appealing.