By
Cherie Rowlands |
Prosecutors in Italy lodged an official request on 25 February for former Costa Concordia captain, Francesco Schettino, and five crew members to be indicted for manslaughter, according to an Associated Press (AP) report.
Further charges the Tuscany-based prosecutors are seeking against Schettino, include causing a shipwreck and abandoning the vessel during the frantic and confused evacuation of passengers and crew. Indictment is also being sought for a variety of charges against five other crew members – including two other officers on the bridge – with all accused of manslaughter.
According to the AP report, chief prosecutor Francesco Verusio said that after a sophisticated scientific and other technological investigation was carried out, “the determining cause of the events of the shipwreck, deaths and injuries, is, unfortunately, dramatically due to the human factor.”
Schettino has claimed that following the collision with a reef near Giglio island, his steering saved lives by enabling the vessel to move closer to port and that the reef was not marked on navigation charts.
It is not known when a ruling on the indictment requests will take place.
Prosecutors have revealed that Costa Cruises has asked for a plea bargain agreement which would see the cruise company pay a €1 million fine, if accepted, the AP report said.