Cargill International has stepped into a bitter ship repossession dispute to tell the Bombay High Court that its messages to the crew of an abandoned tanker were “fraudulently amended”.
The claim emerged in the battle over the 18,041-dwt Aeon (built 2012). The auctioned vessel is to be handed over to new owner Seven Islands Shipping, and the Indian court has ordered all crew on the repossessed and auctioned Saint James Shipping tanker to be removed over the master’s protests, by force if necessary.
The firmly worded order in the case of comes at a time when union officials believe the outlook is good for getting months of back wages paid on all four vessels that are currently subject to legal disputes between Saint James principal and US financier EnTrust Global.
Meanwhile, however, charterer Cargill International has stepped into the dispute with dramatic claims of forgery.
In his 15 September ruling High Court judge NJ Jamadar rejected a document received from Saint James, which purports to be a message from Cargill showing that the crew of the Aeon had already been paid off.
The judge cited a letter from Cargill that claimed its communications with the ship’s master and crew had been “fraudulently amended”.
The allegations concern a 29 July deal between Cargill and captain Zubair Aslam, master of the Aeon. With unpaid crew remaining on the arrested vessel with no contract and often no provisions, Cargill offered them some $275,000 to offload its cargo, not as salary but as a gratuity paid for humanitarian reasons.
But the version provided to the Bombay sheriff by former owner Saint James Shipping had been altered, according to Cargill.
“The copy of the agreement presented by the former registered owner of the vessel to the sheriff of Mumbai is not a true copy of the agreement entered into between Cargill International SA and the master and crew of the Aeon,” wrote Cargill as quoted by the judge.
“It has been amended, apparently fraudulently, in several respects,” wrote Cargill. “We strongly object to and entirely reject these attempted fraudulent amendments to the agreement.”
Shipowner Tariverdi said he was unaware of the Bombay High Court ruling and the forgery allegations until asked about them, and offered no comment before reviewing the fresh court document.
But he told TradeWinds the crews of both the Aeon and the 11,479-dwt Sol (built 2007) have sought what he characterised as “double payment” through other parties.
A Cargill spokesman said: “As this is ongoing, we cannot comment on the allegations, but what I can say is that we did offer humanitarian aid and support to the crew.”
Judge Jamadar took exception to the master’s defiant refusal to leave the ship.
“The Court appreciates the anxiety of the crew to receive its wages, before they are directed to disembark. However, in the case at hand, the stand of the crew that they will not hand over the vessel till the wages are paid can in no circumstances be appreciated,” he wrote.
He ordered the Aeon crew be paid one month’s back wages out of sale proceeds and indicated that they would have to seek the rest through a claim in admiralty.
International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) consultant John Wood told TradeWinds the main remaining concern for getting the crew paid is the slow speed of the Indian court system.
The Aeon is the first ship to leave the fleet of Saint James in its battle with alternative finance shop EnTrust Global, over a mortgage claim that comes to around $23m.
Other parties in the disputes include Golden Radiance Ship Management, the American P&I Club, the crew, bunkerers, and charterers. The ITF union has taken a leading role on behalf of the abandoned crew members, although these are not ITF members.
The Aeon and the Sol have been arrested at Mumbai and Hazira in India and sold at auction, respectively for $13m and something over $5m.
TradeWinds understands there is little urgency about arresting a third ship, the 13,554-dwt Lua (built 2010), which has been idled for many months in the Dominican Republic with mechanical problems. This week, however, Wood told TradeWinds the Lua crew was set to be paid off by the American Club.
The remaining ship, the 17,475-dwt Ariana (built 2016), was the most valuable in the Saint James fleet, and Tariverdi told TradeWinds he hopes to emerge from the dispute still in business with it. After a dramatic episode at Yemen and a forced handover from a former Global Radiance crew, the Ariana is now off Dubai undergoing repairs, Tariverdi told TradeWinds.
