Concordia captain sentenced to 16 years

Francesco Schettino, captain of the Costa Concordia, has been jailed for 16 years after steering the ship on to rocks in 2012, an incident which left 32 people dead.

The three judges in Tuscany gave Schettino five years for shipwreck, 10 years for manslaughter and one year for leaving the ship before his passengers.

Prosecutors labelled Schettino a “careless idiot” and claimed that the 54-year-old steered too close to rocks near the Italian island of Giglio while trying to impress a Moldovan dancer.

He had claimed that he accidently fell into a lifeboat after slipping, prompting the Italian coastguard to demand that he return to his vessel.

Costa Crociere, the cruise line, was ordered to pay damages to passengers.

In a statement Schettino said that his “head was offered to save economic interests” – referring to Costa which, he claimed, had left him to face trial on his own.

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