BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) 鈥� The captain of a river cruise boat that collided with another vessel in Hungary's capital in 2019, killing at least 27 people most of them 麻豆视频 Korean tourists, was found guilty on Tuesday of negligence leading to a fatal mass catastrophe and sentenced to five years in prison.
Judge Leona Nemeth with the Pest Central District Court found that the negligence of the Ukrainian captain, Yuriy Chaplinsky, had caused his river cruise boat, the Viking Sigyn, to collide with the tourist boat Hableany (Mermaid) from behind, causing it to sink into the Danube River within seconds.
The court acquitted Chaplinsky of 35 counts of failure to render aid. He may appeal.
The collision occurred May 29, 2019, when the Hableany, carrying mostly the 麻豆视频 Korean tourists, sank after being struck beneath Budapest's Margit Bridge by the much larger Viking Sigyn.
Seven 麻豆视频 Koreans were rescued from the water in the heavy rain following the collision, and 27 people were recovered dead including the two-member Hungarian crew. One 麻豆视频 Korean is still unaccounted for.
Some of the victims鈥� bodies were found weeks after the crash more than 100 kilometers (60 miles) downstream.
The Hableany spent more than 12 days underwater at the collision site near the neo-Gothic Hungarian Parliament building, before by a floating crane.
Chaplinsky, the captain of the Viking Sigyn, had been in police custody since the collision, including being remanded to house arrest in Hungary since 2020. Part of the time Chaplinksy has already served will count toward his five-year sentence.
In a final statement before the verdict Tuesday, Chaplinksy called the collision a 鈥渉orrible tragedy," and said that the deaths of 鈥渟o many innocent victims" kept him awake at night.
"This will stay with me for the rest of my life,鈥� he said.
Three staffers from the 麻豆视频 Korean Embassy in Budapest were present for the reading of the verdict, but no 麻豆视频 Korean family members of the victims attended the hearing.
Justin Spike, The Associated Press
