DOJ looking into possible ‘conspiracy’ in Bataan oil spill

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is looking into a possible "conspiracy" that might have led to the recent maritime disaster in Bataan involving three vessels that leaked thousands of litres of fuel into Manila Bay.

“There are so many red flags dito [in this incident],” DOJ Undersecretary Raul Vasquez said at the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City.

On Friday, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the DOJ is eyeing the filing of a class suit against those responsible for the oil spill.

Remulla also said that all three vessels were “interconnected,” but did not elaborate.

Pressed to explain what the Justice chief meant when he said that the vessels involved in the incident were interconnected, Vasquez said, “‘Yan ang sinasabi kong red flag, pare-parehas na magkakadikit (That’s the red flag I’ve been talking about, they are all near each other).”

On July 25, the MT Terranova capsized and sank 3.6 nautical miles east off Lamao Point in Limay, Bataan, with one crew member reported to have died.

MT Terranova was carrying 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel.

Meanwhile, the MTKR Jason Bradley — another vessel that sank in the waters off Mariveles, Bataan on July 27 — was carrying 5,500 liters of diesel, and was also found to have leaks.

A third vessel, the MV Mirola 1, meanwhile, ran aground near the shore of Mariveles town. Oil was seen flowing into the ocean from tanks inside the motor vessel.

“I think, these are three to five nautical miles away from each other. We can draw a lot of conclusions from there,” Vasquez said.

Conspiracy?

Authorities are also questioning why the vessels sailed despite warnings of an upcoming typhoon, according to the DOJ official.

“Maraming mga question pero ayoko pa sabihin sa ngayon kasi ongoing pa ang fact-finding… Maybe it’s conspiracy, maybe… who knows?” Vasquez said.

Asked if the DOJ is looking at the angle of conspiracy in its ongoing investigation, he said, “Titignan natin malamang… kasi makikita mo may mga red flags (We'll look into it, of course… because there are red flags).”

GMA News Online has sought comment from the lawyer of Portvaga Ship Management Inc., which owns MV Terranova, but it has yet to reply as of posting time.

Meanwhile, Vasquez said the “admissions” from the crew of the involved vessels were also found to be red flags.

He questioned the number of hours that a certain vessel is at sea when its destination is much farther away.

“Nung nagtatanong kami… sinabi na ganito lang ‘yung nalayag niya, ilang oras na siya. Bakit? Papunta siyang Iloilo eh, bakit ganun lang? (When we asked… they said they've been out at sea for quite some time already and yet the ship has not moved that much.),” Vasquez said.

Intentional?

The DOJ official was also asked if the sinking of the vessels were intentional.

Vasquez responded, “Siguro, sa lahat naman ng investigation, we always look at the possibility na sinadya kasi mas mabigat ang liabilities eh (In all investigations, we always look at the possibility that it was intentional because the liabilities are heavier.)”

“Kahit hindi sinadya ‘yan, still it could be a crime, ‘yung criminal negligence na tinatawag (Even if it wasn't intentional, there could still be criminal liabiility),” he said.

Nonetheless, the DOJ official said that “under presumption of innocence, we cannot make any conclusions at this point.

Vasquez said the DOJ tasked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct parallel investigation into the incident. –VAL, GMA Integrated News