Federal agents have boarded a vessel managed by the same company as a cargo ship that caused the deadly Baltimore bridge collapse, as confirmed by the FBI.
Statements from the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Maryland on Saturday revealed that authorities have boarded the Maersk Saltoro, which is managed by Synergy Marine Group.
The FBI, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division, and Coast Guard Investigative Services are conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity aboard the Maersk Saltoro, according to the statements.
No further specifics were provided by the authorities regarding the nature of the activity.
In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday, the U.S. Justice Department alleged that the owner, Grace Ocean Private Ltd., and the manager, Synergy Marine Group, both based in Singapore, negligently overlooked known electrical issues on the vessel that experienced a power outage just before colliding with a support column on the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March.
The Justice Department is seeking to recover over $100 million spent by the government to clear the underwater debris and reopen Baltimore's port.
A spokesperson for Grace Ocean confirmed that the FBI and Coast Guard boarded the Maersk Saltoro at the Port of Baltimore on Saturday morning.
The spokesperson reiterated the owner and manager's stance of anticipating their day in court to address the allegations made in the Justice Department's lawsuit.
