{"id":6236,"date":"2026-04-01T00:21:31","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T16:21:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/?p=6236"},"modified":"2026-04-01T00:21:33","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T16:21:33","slug":"komodo-boat-tragedy-survivor-tells-court-vessel-was-not-piloted-by-captain-before-sinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/komodo-boat-tragedy-survivor-tells-court-vessel-was-not-piloted-by-captain-before-sinking\/","title":{"rendered":"Komodo Boat Tragedy: Survivor Tells Court Vessel Was Not Piloted by Captain Before Sinking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

LABUAN BAJO, Indonesia \u2014<\/strong> In a case that continues to raise difficult questions about maritime safety in one of Indonesia\u2019s most iconic destinations, new courtroom testimony has introduced a critical detail: the tourist vessel that sank in Komodo waters may not have been under the captain\u2019s control in the hours before it went down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andrea Ortu\u00f1o Ripoll, a survivor of the KM Putri Sakinah<\/a><\/strong><\/em> sinking and the wife of a Valencia women\u2019s football coach, told the Labuan Bajo District Court that a young crew member\u2014not the captain\u2014was steering the boat prior to the incident that claimed the lives of her husband and three children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her testimony, delivered remotely from Spain via video link, adds a new dimension to an ongoing trial that has already drawn attention far beyond Indonesia\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Key Detail Emerges in Court<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Responding to questions from the presiding judge, Andrea described what she observed in the hours leading up to the disaster on December 26, 2025, in the waters near Padar Island within Komodo National Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs far as I remember, it was a young crew member who was steering the boat,\u201d she said through a Spanish interpreter present in the courtroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked to identify the individual, Andrea pointed to one of the defendants\u2014a 22-year-old crew member\u2014after the court directed a camera toward the accused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The individual she identified, Muhamad Alif Latifa N. Djudje, served as the vessel\u2019s chief engineer, not its captain.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Andrea
Andrea Ortuno, the wife of the late Fernando, coach of Valencia FC, took the oath before testifying at the trial of the KM Putri Sakina ship in Labuan Bajo (March 31, 2026). (Hey Bali \/ IST)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A Shift in Responsibility<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The distinction matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In maritime operations, command of a vessel typically rests with the captain, particularly in challenging conditions. The suggestion that a non-captain crew member was at the helm raises questions about protocol, oversight, and whether standard operating procedures were followed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andrea told the court that the young crew member had been steering the vessel since late afternoon\u2014around sunset\u2014hours before the boat encountered the conditions that led to its sinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evidence Captured Before the Incident<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In a detail that could prove significant, Andrea said she had recorded video footage showing the crew member operating the vessel earlier that day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to her testimony, the video has already been submitted to investigators during earlier questioning in Labuan Bajo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the contents of that footage have not yet been publicly disclosed in court, its existence introduces potential visual evidence into a case that has so far relied heavily on witness accounts and technical assessments.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"A
The Final Portrait: Fernando Mart\u00edn Carreras and his family aboard the KM Putri Sakinah, Labuan Bajo, December 26, 2025\u2014hours before the tragedy. (Heybali\/IST)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A Tragedy Under Scrutiny<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The sinking of KM Putri Sakinah<\/em> occurred at approximately 8:00 p.m. local time, when the vessel was reportedly struck by strong waves. Andrea and her youngest child survived, but her husband, Fernando Martin Carreras, and their three other children did not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case has since evolved into a broader legal and public examination of safety practices in Indonesia\u2019s maritime tourism sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two individuals are currently on trial: the ship\u2019s captain, Lukman, and the crew member identified by Andrea, Alif. Both face charges related to negligence resulting in loss of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond the Courtroom<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For Labuan Bajo\u2014a gateway to the Komodo National Park and a flagship destination in Indonesia\u2019s tourism strategy\u2014the implications extend well beyond a single incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case has highlighted the complex balance between rapid tourism growth and the systems required to support it safely. For international visitors, it underscores a reality that often remains unspoken: behind the promise of adventure lies an infrastructure that must be held to consistent and rigorous standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#heybalinews<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LABUAN BAJO, Indonesia \u2014 In a case that continues to raise difficult questions about maritime safety in one of Indonesia\u2019s most iconic destinations, new courtroom testimony has introduced a critical detail: the tourist vessel that sank in Komodo waters may not have been under the captain\u2019s control in the hours before it went down. Andrea […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6237,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_override_bookmark_settings":[],"jnews_food_recipe":[],"enable_food_recipe":"","food_recipe_title":"","food_recipe_description":"","food_recipe_serve":"","food_recipe_time":"","food_recipe_prep":"","food_recipe_level":"","food_recipe_keywords":"","food_recipe_category":"","food_recipe_cuisine":"","food_recipe_yield":"","food_recipe_calories":"","enable_print_recipe":"","ingredient":[],"instruction":"","jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_review":[],"enable_review":"","type":"","name":"","summary":"","brand":"","sku":"","good":[],"bad":[],"score_override":"","override_value":"","rating":[],"price":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"jnews_post_split":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[76,51,61],"tags":[47,106,146,82,516,62,527,190,433,594,522,54,373,519,517],"class_list":["post-6236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","category-bali-update","category-global-impacts","tag-bali","tag-bali-expat","tag-bali-life","tag-bali-tourism","tag-fernando-martin-carreras","tag-international","tag-komodo-boat","tag-komodo-island","tag-labuan-bajo","tag-labuan-bajo-tourism","tag-mar-martinez-ortuno","tag-news","tag-sink","tag-spain","tag-valencia"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6236\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heybali.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}