Denys Korotkiy, Chief Engineer of the vessel Donald, was sentenced to spend more than a year in prison, as announced on September 18, for environmental injustice and corporate accountability.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the conviction followed Korotkiy's conspiracy to obstruct justice, obstruction of justice, and the failure to maintain an accurate oil record book. U.S. District Court Judge Todd W. Robinson for the Southern District of California sentenced Korotkiy on September 15. The crime involving illegal dumping of oily bilge water went beyond breaching environmental protection laws, as Korotkiy also conspired with others to obstruct the U.S. Coast Guard's inspection and investigation of the mishandling of oily bilge water on their vessel.
The vessel's operating company, Interunity Management (Deutschland) GMBH, pleaded guilty to maintaining false and incomplete records relating to the discharge of oily bilge water. The company was ordered to pay a total of $1.25 million, with more than $312,000 allocated to benefit marine and coastal natural resources in or near the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve.
Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Andrew R. Haden for the Southern District of California made the public announcement. The U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Diego and the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service investigated the case, with Senior Trial Attorney Stephen Da Ponte of the Environment and Natural Resources Division's Environmental Crimes Section, and, Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie K. Pierson for the Southern District of California prosecuting the case.
