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Ship's Captain Pleads Guilty to Obstructing Justice

Release Date: 02/23/2005
Contact Information:

Contact: Stacie Findon, 202-564-7338 / [email protected]

(02/23/05) Ioannis Kallikis, of Athens, Greece, Captain of the Motor Vessel Katerina pleaded guilty on Feb. 16 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles to charges that he obstructed justice by advising other crew members to destroy and conceal from United States Coast Guard inspectors incriminating telexes relating to the use of bypass pipes on the vessel. The bypass pipe had been used to illegally discharge oil into the Pacific Ocean. Illegally discharging oil into the ocean can harm fish and other aquatic life. The case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Office, the Coast Guard's Investigative Service and the Los Angeles office of EPA's Criminal Investigation Division. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles.