Lima, Jan 28 (AFP\/APP): A judge in Peru on Friday barred four executives of Spanish energy giant Repsol from leaving the country for 18 months as investigations look into a catastrophic oil spill.<\/p>\n
The government described the January 15 spill, in which 6,000 barrels of oil leaked into the sea, as an “ecological disaster.”<\/p>\n
It happened when an Italian-flagged tanker, the “Mare Doricum,” was unloading oil at the La Pampilla refinery, just off Peru’s coast around 30 kilometers (19 miles) north of Lima.<\/p>\n
Repsol said the tanker was hit by freak waves triggered by a tsunami after a massive volcanic eruption near Tonga, more than 10,000 kilometers away.<\/p>\n
Judge Romualdo Aguedo granted “the prosecution’s request” to prevent the four executives, including Repsol Peru’s Spanish president Jaime Fernandez-Cuesta Luca de Tena, from leaving the country.<\/p>\n
Peru has demanded compensation from Repsol over the spill, and the energy giant faces a potential $34.5-million fine, the environment ministry has said.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors claim ocean currents have carried crude 140 kilometers north of the refinery, provoking the death of untold numbers of fish and sea birds.<\/p>\n
It has also prevented hundreds of traditional artisanal fishermen from working.<\/p>\n
The Mare Doricum is anchored with a ban on setting sail, while hundreds of workers have been desperately trying to clean up around 20 affected beaches.<\/p>\n
Fernandez-Cuesta Luca de Tena is accused of being responsible for the crime of “environmental pollution to the detriment of the state,” with the three other executives considered “accomplices.”<\/p>\n
If found guilty, Repsol\u2019s president faces a potential prison sentence of four to six years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lima, Jan 28 (AFP\/APP): A judge in Peru on Friday barred four executives of Spanish energy giant Repsol from leaving the country for 18 months as investigations look into a catastrophic oil spill. The government described the January 15 spill, in which 6,000 barrels of […]<\/p>\n
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