from St Petersburg, Russia, was on watch on the Solong when it collided with US tanker Stena Immaculate off the East Yorkshire coast - leaving 38-year-old Mark Angelo Pernia missing presumed dead. A trial at the Old Bailey in London heard Motin, 59, did not keep a proper lookout on 10 March 2025, or use all available means to determine the risk of a collision or leave enough time to take evasive action. Passing sentence, Mr Justice Andrew Baker told Motin he had fallen prey to his own "complacency and arrogance", adding: "You were a serious accident waiting to happen." The trial previously heard the tanker was visible on the Solong's radar display for 36 minutes before impact, yet Motin failed to steer away from the collision course, sound the alarm, summon help or initiate a crash stop. Defence barristers told the trial there was no doubt Motin was at fault for the collision, but claimed his actions did not amount to gross negligence manslaughter. Prosecutor Julia Faure-Walker said Motin had lied about what happened to "get back to his wife" in Russia. Following the collision, Motin messaged his wife, saying he would be "guilty", the court was told. However, he denied he had been asleep, or had left his post.

The judge said Motin's version of events was "extremely implausible" and that Pernia's death was "wholly avoidable". The basic facts of the collision "suggest a ship unaware of the ship ahead" and that was the "most likely" explanation, he added. Motin had led jurors on a "merry dance" in his evidence, which was an "exercise in inventive distraction", Mr Justice Baker said. "His claim to be confused was a lie that unravelled when tested at trial." (BBC)