Russian Captain Jailed Over Fatal North Sea Collision

Guilty verdict ends 11-month legal saga following catastrophic ship collision that killed Filipino seafarer

By Paul Morgan (gCaptain) – A Russian ship captain has been found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence following a devastating North Sea collision that killed a crewmember and sparked an eight-day inferno visible for miles across the Yorkshire coast.

On February 2, Vladimir Motin, 59, from St. Petersburg, stood emotionless at London’s Old Bailey on Monday as jurors delivered their verdict after eight hours of deliberation, concluding a three-week trial examining one of the most serious maritime incidents in UK waters in recent years. Motin was convicted for gross negligence manslaughter over the death of Solong crew member Mark Angelo Pernia, whose body was never recovered after the collision on 10 March 2025. 

On Thursday, February 5, Mr Justice Andrew Baker sentenced Motin to six years imprisonment, telling him: “You were a serious accident waiting to happen.” He will be eligible for parole after serving four years. 

The judge rejected Motin’s account as “highly implausible” and “desperate stuff,” ruling that his failure to keep a proper lookout represented a “wholesale failure of his duty.” Motin had shown “blatant disregard for the very high risk of death” and fallen prey to his own “complacency and arrogance,” Mr Justice Baker said Pernia’s death was “wholly avoidable” and blame lay squarely on the defendant, the court heard. 

The judge noted other crew members could have died and the crash caused “huge” destruction of cargo. In a victim impact statement, Pernia’s widow Leacel told the court no amount of compensation could make up for the “pain” of her loss and its impact on their young family. Defence counsel James Leonard KC conveyed Motin’s “shame” and his vow never to go to sea again, highlighting his previously “blameless” record and calling this “truly an aberration of his conduct.”

The collision occurred at 9:47 a.m. on March 10, 2025, when Motin’s 130-meter containership Solong ploughed into the anchored US-flagged tanker Stena Immaculate at approximately 16 knots. The impact breached the tanker’s cargo tank, releasing more than 220,000 barrels of high-grade aviation fuel. Heat from the collision ignited the fuel, creating a massive fireball that engulfed both vessels.

Filipino able seaman Mark Angelo Pernia, 38, working on Solong’s forecastle at impact, died instantly. His body was never recovered. Pernia left behind a five-year-old child and a wife seven months pregnant, a second child he would never meet.

Prosecutor Tom Little KC told jurors that the anchored Stena Immaculate had been visible on Solong’s radar for 36 minutes before impact, yet Motin, the vessel’s sole watchkeeper, did “absolutely nothing” to prevent collision. He failed to summon help, reduce speed, sound alarms, or take evasive action.

CCTV footage captured the shocked reaction of Stena Immaculate’s crew: “Holy shit… what just hit us… a container ship… this is no drill, fire fire fire, we have had a collision.” A full minute of silence from Solong’s bridge preceded Motin’s response.

The collision occurred in patchy visibility ranging between 0.25 and 2.0 nautical miles, approximately 14 nautical miles northeast of Spurn Head near the Humber Estuary. Solong had departed Grangemouth, Scotland, the previous evening bound for Rotterdam. Stena Immaculate, chartered by the US Air Force and carrying aviation fuel from Greece to the UK, was one of eight vessels anchored awaiting a berth.

Prosecutors described Motin’s negligence as “truly, exceptionally bad.” He had switched off the vessel’s bridge navigation watch alert system (BNWAS), designed to ensure someone is physically present and awake on the bridge. Neither vessel had a dedicated lookout, despite requirements for additional watchkeepers in reduced visibility.

In his defence, Motin claimed he made a “mistake” attempting to take the ship off autopilot, pressing the wrong button when trying to steer away. He said he feared a rudder fault and avoided a crash stop fearing he would hit Stena Immaculate’s accommodation block.

Prosecutor Julia Faure Walker dismissed this: “It would have been blindingly obvious to him that he had pressed the wrong button. The reality is that he did nothing to avoid collision.” All 36 surviving crew members were rescued by HM Coastguard. Motin and his crew abandoned ship at Grimsby, where he messaged his wife saying he would be “guilty.”

Solong burned for eight days before being towed to Aberdeen. Aviation fuel spilled into the sea and thousands of plastic pellets washed up along the Norfolk coast, though extensive long-term pollution appears avoided.

Detective Chief Superintendent Craig Nicholson called it a “simple, senseless tragedy,” noting it was “a miracle that there weren’t more fatalities.” The UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch continues investigating navigation practices, fatigue management, and vessel maintenance. Civil litigation is underway, with Solong’s owner facing a lawsuit at London’s High Court.

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