Notorious Bulk Carrier Sage Sagittarius Sold for Scrapping

Nippon Yusen Kaisha’s Sage Sagittarius, a 25 year old post panamax bulk carrier known for its troubled past, has been sold for demolition in Bangladesh at a reported rate of $430 per ldt.

The vessel became widely known in Australian media more than ten years ago as the “death ship” after three crewmembers died under unexplained circumstances in a short period of time.

Head chef Cesar Llanto, 42, disappeared in August 2012. A 2017 ruling by the New South Wales deputy state coroner stated that he either fell or was thrown overboard, or was killed and his body disposed of by unknown individuals. He vanished off the coast of Cairns and has never been located.

Two weeks later, on September 14, chief engineer Hector Collado, 55, died from severe injuries after being struck on the head with an unidentified object by unknown persons as the ship approached Newcastle, according to the coroner’s findings. Collado then either fell or was pushed over a handrail near the storeroom on the second deck.

A third fatality occurred on October 6, when Kosaku Monji, 37, was crushed on a conveyor belt while the ship was docked in Kudamatsu, Japan.

The ship’s captain, Venancio Salas, faced multiple allegations, including assaulting crew members, gun running, and attempting to hide evidence. Reports suggested that the cook had been preparing to inform the International Transport Worker’s Federation in Australia about Salas’s behavior.

Salas later admitted to striking crew members, engaging in heavy drinking aboard the vessel and taking commissions from firearm sales to crew.