Sea killing: Voice data from ship not available

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An attempt by the crew of the Italian ship to 'intentionally destroy crucial evidence by not switching on the voice data recorder' is suspected, as the investigations by the mercantile marine department into the firing incident progress.

“The data on the VDR will get erased after 12 hours if the switch is not pressed, and now four days have passed. The data is crucial for the investigation,” the principal officer of the department, MP John, told Deccan Chronicle here on Sunday.

Only a few documents have been received from the ship and, in all probability, the department may take up investigation on board the ship on Monday, examining the logbook, the GPS and the ship’s port calls.

Official sources said that as per norms, the VDR is switched on in the event of a suspected pirate attack or an act like the firing. The failure to do so even after two fishermen were killed was intentional and could be construed as an attempt to sabotage a probe.

“It would take some time to analyse other data from the ship which would have to be detained till then, said John.

Police said that after analysing other data from the ship — which would clearly indicate whether there was any substance in the Italian crew's claim that it was in international waters — they would also look at the details of the calls made after the incident.

As per records, the first distress call was made through a wireless set to a fisherman on his mobile phone, who then passed it on to another person, Aloysius, at 4.58 pm on Wednesday, who in turn informed the coastal authorities.

The police is in contact with the mobile operator to ascertain the data for the nearest tower which could help in getting a clearer picture of the location of the ship at the time of the shooting.