Baltimore ship crash: U.S. slaps criminal cases against Singapore, Chennai firms and Indian national

The U.S. Justice Department has slapped criminal cases against Synergy Marine of Singapore and Synergy Maritime of Chennai, as well as Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, the Indian technical superintendent of container ship Dali, which collided with a bridge in Baltimore, U.S., in March 2024. They have been charged with conspiracy, wilfully failing to immediately inform the U.S. Coast Guard of a known hazardous condition, obstruction of an agency proceeding, and false statements, as well as pollution.

Synergy is the manager of Dali, manned almost entirely by an Indian crew. Synergy and Grace Ocean Private Limited, the owner of the ship, had agreed to pay nearly $102 million in October, 2024, to resolve a civil claim brought by the department on this matter.

The Justice Department has alleged an economic loss of $5 billion due to the accident that led to the death of six construction workers.

The collision was largely due to two onboard blackouts. The first blackout was allegedly caused by a loose electrical wire that snapped. But Dali recovered power automatically from the first blackout. The second blackout was allegedly due to the use of an inappropriate fuel pump for the generators, which became starved of fuel and conked out, leading to loss of power and steering that caused the collision. The Justice department has alleged that information regarding the pump was concealed and false statements were made during the inquiry.