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Ship's Engineers Charged in Oregon with Fraudulent Oil Logs

Release Date: 5/10/2002
Contact Information: Luke Hester
[email protected]
202-564-7818


Pyeong Gab Jeong of Korea, chief engineer of the motor vessel Cygnus and Duk Jo Jeong, the Cygnus' first engineer, were charged in a criminal complaint in federal court in Portland, Ore., for allegedly making false statements in the ship's oil record book.

They allegedly recorded that waste oil was burned in the ship's incinerator when, instead, it was being discharged into the ocean. Both men were ordered to remain in Oregon, as were several material witnesses. The Cygnus is owned by Feng Lee Maritime Corp. of Panama City and is operated by Fujitran Corp. of Japan. The Cygnus is an automobile transport ship.

The discharge of oil into the ocean can be harmful to aquatic life. The case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Coast Guard. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's office in Portland.