Responsible for boat that sank in Belém denies overcrowding

Boatswain Marcos de Souza Oliveira, captain of the boat Dona Lourdes II, which sank on Thursday (8), in Belém, with a still uncertain number of passengers on board, told his lawyer that the tragedy was an “accident caused by the force of nature”.

“He says that he was sailing normally when there was a strong thud on the underside of the vessel, probably [causado pelo tronco de uma] tree. This broke the speedboat’s control system, which was left out of control, at the mercy of the water force,” criminal lawyer Dorivaldo Belém told Agência Brasil.

According to the defender, Oliveira advised passengers to calm down and adjust their life jackets, warning of the imminent danger. “He still asked for help, but within minutes the speedboat sank,” added the lawyer.

According to maritime authorities, the speedboat had a capacity for 82 people, including crew. Until this morning, 22 deaths had been confirmed and the rescue of 66 survivors. At least one person remains missing.

For now, the Pará Public Security Secretariat (Segup) works with the hypothesis that, among children, men and women of all ages, at least 89 people traveled from Cachoeira do Arari, in the Marajó archipelago, to the capital, Bethlehem.

The lawyer said that, according to his client, there were 82 life jackets aboard the Dona Lourdes II, in addition to four support buoys that, together, would serve to save up to 60 other people. “In other words, in terms of safety equipment, it had almost twice its maximum capacity”, said the lawyer. “Most of the people were wearing the vest. [no momento em que o barco começou a afundar]but the fact was unexpected, serious, and many people panicked and did not know how to operate the equipment”, added Dorivaldo Belém.

He said his client denies that there were more than 82 people aboard the speedboat at the time of the sinking. “He contests, says that there were not this number of people. From this I can say that, among the 66 survivors, there may be those who really weren’t on the boat and who are now saying that they were just to show up, to say that they were saved, I don’t know with what intention. We’ll have to see that too. Anyway, even if there were five more people, that’s not why the boat sank”, said the lawyer, assuring that, as well as nautical accidents, the overcrowding of boats is also a reality in the region, due to the lack of transport to serve the population. “It’s not right. It is irregular, but that is not the cause of an accident.”

The lawyer confirmed that, as disclosed by the state agency for Regulation and Control of Public Services (Arcon), the accident boat belonged to the boatswain’s mother. According to the agency, Oliveira started using the Dona Lourdes II after having two other vessels (Clicia and Expresso) seized for irregular passenger transport. Oliveira’s defender himself admits that, with Dona Lourdes II, the client continued to operate without the necessary authorizations.

“The vessel is duly registered with the Port Authority and, therefore, was authorized to carry out this type of transport, but with an irregular detail: it was not authorized to operate on the route where the accident occurred”, explained Belém, guaranteeing that in addition to living in Belém, Oliveira has been working since he was a teenager and, therefore, knows the region and the activity well.

“He is an excellent commander and was waiting for the license he applied for 6 months ago to operate on this route. There is an administrative process to obtain the authorization and it was in progress, but it was not due to lack of authorization or due to lack of skill [do contramestre] the accident happened,” said the lawyer.

Also according to the lawyer, at first, Oliveira did not go to the maritime and police authorities because he was recovering from the trauma – the boatswain himself said he swam to escape with his life, helping his wife and a child who was on the boat. Later, according to Belém, Oliveira feared violence, due to the popular commotion caused by the shipwreck.

After 96 hours of the accident, the lawyer assured that he is arranging the presentation of his client to the Civil Police, who, in turn, informed, in a note, that the Specialized Fluvial Police Station is listening to the testimony of survivors and other witnesses within the scope of the investigation. that runs under secrecy, and that “all appropriate measures” are being adopted to “clarify the facts and hold those responsible criminally responsible” for the sinking.

The Port Authority of the Eastern Amazon also launched an inquiry and intends to summon those responsible for the speedboat to provide clarification.

Lawyer Dorivaldo Belém questions the possibility that Oliveira will be indicted for intentional homicide, that is, for having taken the risk of killing.

“He [Oliveira] himself says that he may not have been skillful; can be held responsible for having acted in an unauthorized stretch and even for not having taught people how to properly use life jackets, but that, to me, does not constitute an intentional homicide. It’s an exaggeration to want to typify a wrongful death [não intencional] in deceitful. Also because, on board the speedboat were his wife and friends”, added the defender, informing that he had already presented a request for habeas corpus to the Court to try to avoid the preventive detention of his client, who should present himself soon to provide clarification.