Australian police officers have seized the black box from the Ruby Princess cruise ship as part of an ongoing investigation into the cruise operator's knowledge about coronavirus-infected passengers
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th April, 2020) Australian police officers have seized the black box from the Ruby Princess cruise ship as part of an ongoing investigation into the cruise operator's knowledge about coronavirus-infected passengers.
Earlier in April, the police launched the criminal investigation to find out whether the cruise operator had known there were people with COVID-19 on board the liner before it entered a port in Australia and let off passengers without going through quarantine procedures.
"About 7pm yesterday (Wednesday 8 April 2020) [09:00 GMT], strike force detectives boarded the vessel to conduct inquiries, which included speaking with crew members, as well as gathering and seizing the voyage data recorder (black box) and other items of interest to the investigation," the police wrote on its website.
Police officers also questioned the captain of the cruise ship.
The Ruby Princess with its 2,700 passengers docked at the port in Sydney on March 19, and is believed to have become Australia's biggest source of COVID-19 infections.
Passengers were allowed to disembark, and over 600 COVID-19 cases, including15 deaths, have since been connected to them. The ship is now docked in New South Wales as its 1,040 crew members are undergoing medical assessments.
