‘Stay here was a terrible experience’

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“I don’t want to speak about the Italian firing incident; the stay here was terrible and experience I would want to forget,” said an irritated Umberto Vittelli, captain of the vessel Enrica Lexie, here on Saturday.

A dejected Vittelli who reached the HC premises to execute the bank guarantee shied away from questions on the firing incident.

The irritation resounded in his replies too. Asked if he could speak English, he quipped, “English is not my language. Yes, I know a little.”

He refused to talk more and walked away. But, when the company got a favourable order from the HC, he began exchanging pleasantries and shared jokes with fellow Italians, including Counsel-General Gianpaulo Cuttillo.

“He said it was terrible not because of the incident or that he was angry with the Indian system. He is a very cool person. The amount of pressure he was under wass unimaginable. He is answerable to the whole crew,” sources close to Mr Vittelli said.

Meanwhile, the Counsel General said that the first phase of the case was over and the next move would be to get the marines out of prison.

The incident would certainly not affect diplomatic relations, he added.