Activist Luca Casarini, mission chief of the migrant rescue NGO Mediterranea, has been placed under investigation for favoring illegal immigration and refusing to obey an order from a warship during the rescue of 50 migrants by the Mare Jonio ship.
Activist Luca Casarini, the former leader of the "Disobbedienti" militant Italian social movement and mission chief of the migrant rescue NGO "Mediterranea Saving Humans", is under investigation for the crimes of favoring illegal immigration and refusing to obey an order from a warship. The investigation is being conducted by the Agrigento prosecutor's office in connection with the rescue of 50 migrants by the Mare Jonio ship, which disembarked the migrants on the coast of Lampedusa on March 20 despite the fact that the Italian finance police had ordered the ship not to do so.
The ship's captain, Pietro Marrone, is accused of the same crimes and has already been questioned by investigating judges regarding the various phases of the rescue. Casarini was interrogated for more than seven hours on Monday by the finance police in Lampedusa, but only as a witness. During his deposition, which took place before Agrigento deputy prosecutor Salvatore Vella and public prosecutor Cecilia Baravelli, Casarini made self-incriminating statements, at which point the interrogation was suspended, as required by law.
Casarini to be interrogated this week
Casarini has already been summoned to appear at the Agrigento prosecutor's office, where he will appear this week with his attorneys for an interrogation as a suspect in the investigation. He will be allowed to invoke the right to remain silent, as provided for by law. Casarini and Marrone are accused of favoring illegal immigration for rescuing 50 migrants off the coast of Libya and refusing to obey the orders of a military ship, which is required by maritime law. Finance police had ordered the men to turn off the Mare Jonio ship's engines when finance police patrol boats pulled up alongside the ship as it headed towards the port of Lampedusa.
Mediterranea says probe a 'chance for transparency'
Mediterranea said that it's "normal procedure" to put both the captain and the head of mission under investigation because they both "share the decisions that are made on board". It said the Agrigento prosecutor's probe is "an extraordinary occasion to tell what is happening in the Mediterranean". Spokesperson Alessandra Sciurba said the NGO is giving "all of our collaboration because it's a great occasion to provide clarification." "We're not the ones violating laws. It's those who have made accords with Libya, who bring migrants back to Libya, who have permitted Libya to have a search-and-rescue zone despite the fact that it's not recognized as a safe port," Sciurba said.