Xu Jun, the principal offender of a fatal maritime incident, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the crime of forcing and organizing others to engage in illegal and risky operations.
The verdict was handed down by the Yangxi County People's Court in western Guangdong province after its first instance hearing on Wednesday.
The other three defendants in the case, Wu Jianliang, Yang Hai and Chu Naitao, were given prison sentences between five and seven years, plus six months.
Xu piloted the Fujing 001 ship, while Wu, Yang and Chu were senior managers.
Xu lost control and the ship struck a wind turbine pile of Shaba Wind Farm in Yangxi county on July 2, 2022. A total of 25 people, including the captain, were killed. Another person went missing and four were rescued.
Yangxi was in the midst of a super typhoon when the collision happened. But the defendants refused to allow the ship, with 30 people aboard, to return to a typhoon shelter and evacuate the people as required by regulations.
The court said that Xu and the other defendants knew the hazards but forced and organized crew members to carry out risky operations anyway. They falsely reported the number of people on board and failed to organize a rescue in a timely manner after the collision.
Their circumstances were particularly egregious, the court said.
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