(MENAFN) Seventeen individuals from Greece's Hellenic Coast Guard have been formally accused in connection with the 2023 Pylos shipwreck, considered one of the gravest maritime tragedies involving migrants in the Mediterranean in recent years.

According to a report by a news agency on Tuesday, the Deputy Prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court has pressed charges against these officers, including the commander of the LS-920 patrol vessel.

The indictments relate to the sinking of the Adriana, a heavily overloaded fishing boat, which occurred on June 14, 2023.

The disaster resulted in the retrieval of at least 82 bodies, though it is believed that up to 650 individuals—many of whom were women and children confined below deck—may have perished. A total of only 104 passengers were rescued.

The Adriana had embarked from Libya en route to Italy, carrying an estimated 750 migrants. The boat sank in international waters but within the Greek jurisdiction for search and rescue operations, close to the coastal town of Pylos.

The vessel's captain is being prosecuted for "causing a shipwreck," "dangerous interference of maritime transport," and "failure to provide assistance."

Additionally, four high-ranking figures, including the former head of the Coast Guard and the official overseeing the National Search and Rescue Coordination Centre, face allegations of "exposing others to danger." Meanwhile, members of the LS-920’s crew are accused of "simple complicity."

Eyewitnesses among the survivors have claimed that the coast guard’s effort to tow the Adriana led to its overturning.

Furthermore, there are allegations that officials attempted to suppress testimony afterward.

Legal representatives advocating for the victims described the indictments as "a substantial and self-evident development in the course of vindication of the victims and the delivery of justice."

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