New charges have been laid against the skipper and second officer of the cargo ship Rena, which crashed into a reef off the New Zealand port of Tauranga.
The 44-year-old captain and navigation officer, 37, both Filipinos, kept their name suppression when they appeared in Tauranga District Court on Wednesday.
The new charges allege they “wilfully attempted to pervert the course of justice” by altering the ship’s documents after the grounding.
The captain faces four charges and the second officer three charges. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of seven years’ imprisonment.
They have already been charged with offences under the Maritime Transport Act and Resource Management Act – where the heaviest penalties are two years’ prison and a $NZ300,000 (about $230,000) fine – and will reappear on February 29.
In New Zealand’s worst maritime environmental disaster, the cargo ship Rena grounded on Astrolabe Reef on October 5, spilling nearly 90 containers and about 360 tonnes of oil, which washed up on local beaches.