Costa Concordia's Infamous Captain Could Work at the Vatican on Parole
Capt. Francesco Schettino, former captain of the lost cruise ship Costa Concordia, may soon be eligible for partial parole, and would have a day job waiting for him outside of prison.
On January 13, 2012, the giant cruise ship Costa Concordia hit a rock and capsized just off the island of Giglio, Tuscany. 32 people were killed in the casualty, and the wreck removal cost about $2 billion, making it the largest project of its kind in history - and Italy's worst maritime disaster since the Second World War.
On that day, Schettino navigated Costa Concordia closer to shore in a "salute" for a retired cruise line commodore, resulting in the grounding and partial sinking. He was accused of manslaughter, and in 2015 he was convicted and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Schettino’s legal representatives say that the collision itself did not cause the fatalities, and blamed a failed backup generator and flooded compartments for failed evacuations; they also denied allegations that he abandoned ship early, or that he had navigated close to shore in order to impress a female dancer who was on the bridge. The captain never admitted fault for the sinking, but blamed issues with the vessel, miscommunication on the bridge and other issues.
Nine years after his conviction, Schettino is up for parole, and a board will announce its decision on his case on April 8. If granted "semi-freedom," he would be allowed to work during the day at the Fabbrica di San Pietro, a Vatican institution charged with preserving St. Peter's Basilica. Sponsored by the prisoner support group Second Chance, his role would be in digitalizing historical documents. He would join other inmates from Rome's prisons who work at the Vatican under the organization's auspices.
Some of the families of the victims of the Costa Concordia disaster have opposed his petition for semi-release. Giovanni Girolamo, father of a crewmember who died in the sinking, told La Nazione that Schettino "must not be released, but given 32 life sentences," equal to the number of the victims.