Italians pay Rs.1.7mn in damages, boat owner drops case

The marines were deployed as guards on an Italian oil tanker

Kochi: 27 April, 2012 - The owner of a damaged fishing boat, on which two Indian fishermen were shot dead allegedly by two Italian Marines from a cargo vessel in February, withdrew his complaint Friday after he was paid compensation of Rs.1.7 million ($32,000) by Italian authorities.

Italian authorities earlier Tuesday handed over two demand drafts of Rs.1 crore each to the Lok Adalat as compensation to families of the two fishermen, following an out of court settlement with them.

J. Freddy, owner of the fishing boat St. Antony, had Thursday filed an application in the Kerala High Court for permission to transfer this case to the Lok Adalat so that he could settle the case out of court, and this was allowed by the high court Friday.

In his petition filed soon after the Feb 15 shooting incident, Freddy had demanded that the Italian vessel Enrica Lexie should not be allowed to leave the Kochi waters unless he was compensated.
Since the past few days, Italian authorities were in touch with Freddy's counsel for paying compensation for his damaged boat. Both sides Friday appeared before the Lok Adalat, and Freddy collected the compensation of Rs.1.7 million and signed documents that he would not pursue the case.

Earlier, the high court bench slammed Freddy and families of the killed fishermen for going back on their original petition, and said once money changed hands everyone changed their stance and this does not augur well in criminal cases.

Ajesh Binki, 25, and Gelastine, 45, were apparently mistaken as pirates and shot dead by Italian Marines from aboard the cargo vessel Enrica Lexie Feb 15, off Alappuzha. Freddy was on board his fishing boat when the shooting took place.

The Marines, Latorre Massimillano and Salvatore Girone, were picked up from the vessel and sent by a court in Kollam to jail Feb 20 on murder charges. They are now lodged in the central prison in Thiruvananthapuram.

Italy pays damages over India fishermen shooting
3 dyas ago
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India — The Italian government has paid compensation of $190,000 each to the families of two Indian fishermen allegedly shot dead by Italian marines in February, lawyers said on Tuesday.
The two marines, who are being held in custody in the southern Indian state of Kerala, were deployed as guards on an Italian oil tanker when they were accused of shooting dead the fishermen after mistaking them for pirates.
The Italians face murder charges in the Indian courts, and the cash settlement will not affect the criminal case lodged against them by the Kerala state government.
C. Unnikrishnan, a lawyer representing the widow of one of the fishermen, said the Italian government had paid 10 million rupees ($189,500) each to the families of Selestian Valentine, 45, and Ajesh Pinky, 24.
"We have settled the compensation case and signed the agreement to withdraw the (civil) cases with the consent of the High Court of Kerala," Unnikrishnan told AFP.
"The Italian marines will have to face prosecution in the criminal case pending against them," he added.
Italy has challenged the murder charges against Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, and it has approached India's Supreme Court saying their detention is illegal.
Italy says the marines should be prosecuted in their home country because the shootings occurred on an Italian-flagged vessel in international waters, but India says they took place in waters under its jurisdiction.
The fate of the marines has threatened to erupt into a diplomatic row, with Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti last month warning his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh against any prosecution.
Italy has expressed its regret over the shootings off the coast of Kerala but said the Indian fishing crew behaved aggressively and were repeatedly warned before shots were fired.
The fishing boat's owner said the marines fired without provocation.
Armed guards are increasingly deployed on cargo ships and tankers in the Indian Ocean to tackle the threat from Somali pirates, who often hold ships and crews hostage for months demanding multi-million dollar ransoms.
The Indian Supreme Court hearing into Italy's petition is expected to resume next week.