Third official of Prabhu Daya taken into custody

Kerala police Thursday took into custody second officer Prasobh Sugathan in MV Prabhu Daya, the Singapore-flagged ship that is suspected to be involved in the March 1 mid-sea collision with a fishing boat off the Alappuzha coast that killed five fishermen.

Sugathan’s father confirmed that his son was taken into custody by police as soon as he arrived at the international airport here from Colombo. Sugathan is the third Indian crew member to be arrested.

“Today morning I had a call from the Indian High Commission in Colombo that my son will be arriving on the morning flight. I did not go to the airport, instead now I am in Alappuzha where he will be brought,” Sugathan’s father told IANS.

With this, all the three who have been named as accused by Kerala police have been arrested. Sugathan is a Kerala native.

Gordon Charles Pereira, the captain of ship who was produced before the Ambalapuzha first class judicial magistrate, was sent to judicial custody Wednesday.

Another officer of the ship, Virendra Kumar Chauhan, is already in custody.

Sugathan’s father has complained that his son was forcibly thrown out of the ship into the sea off Sri Lankan March 2.