The head of Greece’s coast guard as well as three other senior officials are reportedly being prosecuted for manslaughter by negligence, following a deadly migrant ship accident in 2023 that took the lives of nearly 650 people.
While the Hellenic Coast Guard denies any wrongdoing, survivors have alleged that the coast guard failed to respond adequately when the trawler Adriana was found in distress near the Greek coastal town of Pylos.
Rights groups representing survivors and families of victims confirmed on Friday that a prosecutor at the Piraeus naval appeals court was bringing criminal charges against four officers, after a lower maritime court had initially acquitted them.
“By order of the Prosecutor of the Court of Appeal, criminal proceedings are to be instituted against four senior officers of the Coast Guard, including its present Chief [Trifonas Kontizas]” the groups said in a statement to the AFP news agency.
On Thursday, news agency Reuters also reported on the prosecution, citing legal sources.
What happened to the trawler Adriana off the coast of Pylos?
On June 13, 2023, the rusted fishing trawler Adriana, loaded with 750 migrants – almost double its official capacity – was en route from Libya to Italy when it ran into trouble.
According to details from Greece’s coast guard, the people on board the boat “refused any help”, leaving the coast guard to inspect the situation and launch a search and rescue operation after the boat sank.
But in a contradictory account, survivors say it took hours for the coast guard to respond to their visible distress and proactively caused the ship to capsize and sink in a “sudden and powerful” manner, causing it to pull the Adriana towards shore.
The trawler sank less than 89 kilometers (55 mi) off the coast of Pylos. Of the estimated 750 on board, 104 survived, but only 82 bodies were found, according to one Press release By the United Nations.
The Greek coast guard said those rescued included Egyptians, Syrians, Pakistanis and Palestinians. Eight were minors.
‘The human cost of inaction’
The incident is Greece’s deadliest migrant ship disaster ever, and has shocked all of Europe. The United Nations called it “a stark reminder of the human cost of inaction.”
Charges were initially filed against 17 Coast Guard members. These included failure to rescue or render aid to persons in distress, causing or assisting a shipwreck, and placing persons in mortal danger.
The circumstances surrounding the incident are still under investigation.
The central Mediterranean Sea has long been considered the world’s deadliest migration route. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) says it has documented more than 1,000 deaths and disappearances along the route so far in 2025.
In 2024, at least 3,500 people were reported dead or missing on the sea route.
Edited by: Zack Crellin