- Danish prosecutors pursue prison sentence for Bunker Holding CEO in the case regarding the group’s alleged violation of sanctions against selling jet fuel to Syria.
- The prosecution in the case believes the CEO knew or should have known about some of the jet fuel trades at the heart of the case.
- Thus they will seek a prison sentence for Demant and fines for both Bunker Holding and Dan-Bunkering.
Danish prosecutors are seeking to impose a prison sentence on Bunker Holding CEO Keld Demant for the alleged involvement of his company and its subsidiary Dan-Bunkering in breaches of EU sanctions against Syria, reports Ship & Bunker.
Breach of EU sanctions
Dan-Bunkering, Bunker Holding and a company director were charged by Denmark’s Public Prosecutor for Special Economic and International Crime (SOIK) over selling jet fuel in breach of EU sanctions against Syria.
- Dan-Bunkering is alleged to have made 33 separate sales between 2015 and 2017.
- The company is alleged to have sold a total of 172,000 tonnes of jet fuel to Russian companies, after which the fuel was delivered to various locations in the Mediterranean and eventually passed to an unknown recipient in Port Banias, Syria.
Denmark’s Public Prosecutor for Special Economic and International Crime (SOIK) estimates the total value of the sales to be around DKK 647 million ($102 million).
DK says that the Public Prosecutor believes that Bunker Holding and Demant participated in eight of the trades even though the company and its CEO had a ‘certain presumption’ that the jet fuel was destined for Syria.
CEO indicted
According to DK, the charges have been brought under Section 110c(2) of the Criminal Code, which can carry up to four years in prison.
The broadcaster also published the response from Bunker Holding to these latest developments. The company noted that, in its opinion, Demant had been indicted only ‘as a consequence of his role as the chief executive of Bunker Holding and Chairman of Dan-Bunkering.’
- Bunker Holding said that Demant was not involved in the deals in question and therefore cannot be held responsible for them.
- The company again denied that it had violated EU sanctions and it also expressed its full confidence in Demant as a director of Bunker Holding and Chairman of Dan-Bunkering.
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Source: Ship & Bunker
