Ukrainian chief engineer from ship detained in India attempts suicide - media
A citizen of Ukraine, Valeriy Sydorenko, the chief maintenance engineer of the Seaman Guard Ohio vessel detained by the Indian Coast Guard, has tried to commit suicide, the AsianAge online publication reported on Sunday.
According to the publication, while on deck of the ship together with the captain, Sydorenko tried to hang himself from the flag mast, but was stopped by Indian security officers who guard the ship.
As a result of the incident, the police brought the captain and the engineer to hospital, where both underwent a medical examination, after which they were put under arrest.
At the same time, The Times of India quoted an Indian police investigator who denied the information about the attempted suicide.
"The two crew members are fine. It is completely wrong information. No one from the crew attempted suicide,'' the publication quoted the Indian law-enforcer as saying.
As reported, on the night between October 11 and October 12, the Indian Coast Guard detained the Seaman Guard Ohio in the Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka. According to official sources, the ship was detained to check whether there were any weapons on board and whether they had the documents necessary for the shipment of its cargo.
The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine reported that there were three citizens of Ukraine aboard - the captain, the chief engineer, and a security guard, who was arrested together with the rest of the security guards from the Seaman Guard Ohio.
The ministry denied media reports that the vessel with Ukrainians onboard was carrying a cargo of weapons, and said that there were only authorized weapons on the ship.
