A captain of a ship has been found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter after a crew member was declared deceased following a collision between a tanker and a container vessel in the North Sea in March 2025.
Following a three-week trial at the Old Bailey, Central Criminal Court, London, the captain of the Solong vessel, Vladimir Motin, 59-years-old, of Primorsky, St Petersburg, Russia, has been found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter.
On Monday, 10 March 2025, Humberside Police received a call at around 11am from the HM Coastguard alerting them that a collision had occurred between two vessels in the North Sea, approximately 10.2 miles off the coast of East Yorkshire, with a crew member reported missing.
A multi-agency rescue operation was launched and led by HM Coastguard. This resulted in all 23 crew members being safely rescued and accounted for from Stena Immaculate, and from the Solong, 13 of the 14 crew members were accounted for and also rescued. All were brought ashore to Grimsby Docks.
Only one crew member, able seaman Mark Pernia, from the Solong was unaccounted for and after HM Coastguard carried out extensive searches to locate him, he was later declared deceased due to the length of time that had passed since the collision and the survivability within the extremely hostile environment.
An investigation was launched by Humberside Police, supported by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), to establish the circumstances of how the collision occurred, with detectives reviewing technical data, radio transmissions, as well as obtaining witness statements from everyone on board the two vessels.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Superintendent Craig Nicholson said:
“From 9.10am, on Monday, 10 March, the Solong was observed to be heading on a fixed course which would take it through an area where a number of ships were anchored, including the Stena Immaculate, which had been anchored since 6.30pm the previous day.
“After reviewing radio transmissions from both vessels, there was no evidence that communications were made from the Solong to alert any ships of its presence or any impending collision.
“My team reviewed further data provided by the HM Coastguard which confirmed the speed and course of the Solong remained constant up until the point of collision at 9.47am.
“Further investigations were carried out, and we established that Vladimir Motin had been on watch from 6.50am (UK time) and was the only person responsible for the vessel at the relevant time. However, confirmation of this came through our analysis of the voyage data recorder from the Solong which indicated that there had been no audible activity from Motin, or any other member of the crew, in the minutes before and immediately after the collision.
“Motin was arrested later that day on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter after the search for the missing crew member, Mark Pernia, was called off and he was declared deceased.”
Motin was interviewed by detectives over the following four days whilst further enquiries were conducted. He was later charged with gross negligence manslaughter and remanded into custody, appearing at Hull Magistrates Court on Saturday, 15 March, where he was further remanded to Hull Prison.
Following a three-week trial at The Old Bailey, Central Criminal Court, London, the jury returned the guilty verdict for Motin. He has been remanded into custody and is due to be sentenced on Thursday, 5 February 2026.
Detective Chief Superintendent Craig Nicholson continued:
“Vladmir Motin was the captain of the Solong, and the only person on watch at the time of the collision, he had a responsibility and a duty of care for the safety of his crew, his vessel, and also for the safety of other vessels in his vicinity. Captain Motin completely failed in this duty, causing the death of one of his own crew and endangering the remaining lives of the crews of both vessels.
“I welcome the jury’s verdict in this case and thank them for their careful examination of the evidence, which was both complex and significant. I sincerely hope that this verdict will provide some solace to the family of Mark Pernia.
“Mark Pernia was a merchant sailor who tragically died whilst doing his job, but he was also a beloved husband and a father to two young children, and his entire family have been devastated by his loss. I would like to express my sincere and heartfelt condolences to Mark’s family, and my gratitude for their patience and understanding throughout this lengthy investigation.
“Had it not been for the valiant rescue efforts led by His Majesty’s Coastguard, the loss of life would undoubtedly have been far greater, and the wider environmental impact could have been catastrophic. I would like to formally recognise and thank the brave efforts of all those engaged in the rescue, recovery, and salvage operations.
“I would also like to thank my investigation team and our partners for their unwavering commitment and professionalism throughout. It is through their hard work and determination in establishing the facts of the case, that Vladimir Motin has been brought to justice today.
“This was a tragic and unnecessary death, and I hope that the verdict will act as a stark reminder as to the responsibilities held to all those who operate at sea, and that future tragedies can be prevented.”
