Update: Ship Owner Arrested in Vessel's Disappearance

Russian authorities have arrested the owner of a missing cargo ship that disappeared nearly two weeks ago in the icy waters of the Sea of Okhotsk off Russia’s Far East coast. Aboard the ship were 750 tons of gold ore and nine crewmembers.

Original: Russian Cargo Ship & Crew Disappear in Sea of Okhotsk

On November 5th Mr. Alexander Shiltsin, the owner of Nikolayevsky-on-Amur seaport and the missing cargo ship, was arrested for violating safety rules that may have contributed to fatalities. According to Independent Online, he is expected to be held behind bars pending trial.

A preliminary probing found that the ship had technical problems, did not take the extreme weather conditions into account and left port without permission. It also was not properly crewed and was overloaded with $230,000 worth of gold ore.

Divers plan to search the seabed in waters at depths of 25 meters, where the AMURSKAYA is likely to be found. Storms in the Sea of Okhotsk have delayed search plans.

One successful rescue mission located an object underwater and a small fuel emission on the water’s surface. Further missions continue to be hindered by weather, delaying confirmation that the debris is in fact the AMURSKAYA.