'L'Ecume II skipper was the best fisherman I knew'

Michael Michieli was described as a "genius" at sea

Watching the work of a fishing boat skipper - who was one of three men killed in a collision between a yacht and a ferry - was "like watching a symphony orchestra", a boat captain has told a court in Jersey.

Artur Sevash-Zade, 35, and Lewis Carr, 30, employed by Condor Ferries at the time, are on trial for the manslaughter of fishing boat skipper Michael Michieli, 62, and Filipino crew members Larry Simyunn, 33, and Jervis Baligat, 31. They deny the charges.

Testifying at the Royal Court, David Nuth, director of Iris Freight, gave evidence of Michael Michieli's experience as a fisherman and skipper.

Through tears, Mr Nuth said the skipper was "one of the best fishermen I ever knew" and that he was "faultless" in his execution of tasks onboard his vessel L'Ecume II.

Mr Nuth said the two men became good friends in 1999 due to both working extensively in the same waters and that he had heard "lots of good stories about Michael" in the years before then.

He said Mr Michieli "made me laugh and vice versa" and that they would have "without a doubt" have daily phone calls to speak about their wives and children.

David Nuth said Micheal Michieli was a "faultess" skipper

Mr Nuth said that Mr Michieli was the "most knowledgeable fisherman I knew in my entire life", adding: "If something needed doing, it was done."

Regarding having his lights on when out at sea, he said Mr Michieli would always have his lights on because, quoting him: "I just wanna make sure they know I'm there."

He told the court that he and Mr Michieli had regular conversations about the skipper's "close ones" [encounters] with larger vessels, including Condor's Commodore Clipper and Goodwill vessels.

He said Mr Michieli always used to put his fishing boat lights on as a matter of protection from larger boats.

Mr Nuth added that "any commercial fishermen" would be concerned about larger vessels in their path, adding it was "a very, very intense and dangerous job".

He told the court that the "boat was absolutely immaculate" due to the work of Larry Simyunn and Jervis Baligat.

L'Ecume II 'well maintained'

In a written statement, Roger Iddon, who had carried out 20 repairs to L'Ecume II, said Mr Michieli was "meticulous" when it came to maintenance.

He said the skipper would "never compromise" his or his crew's safety by going out to sea if it was not fully fit-for-purpose.

Mr Iddon described him as a "genuine, honest, hard-working gentleman", a "family man" and "good all-rounder".

Marine electronics engineer Philip Brown testified, saying the state of L'Ecume II, built in 1968, was "good" and "well-maintained" for its age, and things were fixed "immediately" if needed.

Former fisherman for Mr Michieli, Benjamin Gallichan, told the court over the seven-year period he had worked with him since 2011, he was "renowned as one of the best".

He said L'Ecume II was an old boat, not modern but "certainly looked after" and the safety of the crew was "engrained" in him and "really important" to Mr Michieli.

Peter Crafter was the captain of a small ferry that ran between Jersey and Granville, France, in 2022.

Testifying, he said most fishing vessels would have their green lights on, "which is not strictly allowed but it's what happens".

Mr Crafter said he had seen Mr Michieli two days before the collision heading to the port in Granville with his green lights on - Jersey fishermen cannot fish in French waters.

"He'd always be displaying that green light," he said, and, while recalling a conversation five years before the collision, Mr Crafter said he had been "moaning" to Mr Michieli about the approach to Granville and having to "battle through 20-plus fishing boats steaming towards me".

"All of them with deck lights on making it hard to see… and all with their green fishing light on."

He said Mr Michieli was "as bad as them" and Mr Michieli said to him: "It stops you getting run down."

A kiss goodbye

In a statement read out by prosecutors, Michael Michieli's wife Clare described her husband as "a well-experienced fisherman" who was passionate about fishing since he was aged six.

She said he was well known in the fishing community and was called "Mick" by his friends.

She also said that L'Ecume II was "well maintained" and he "was proud of the boat".

The day before the collision, Mrs Michieli said she and her husband had headed to bed early as he had to be up at 03:00 GMT.

When he left, he came round to her side of the bed to say goodbye and to give her a kiss.

Mrs Michieli said she was later told over the phone that "something's happened to Mick and the boat, and there's lots of debris".

She then checked AIS, the automatic identification system used to track vessels at sea, and saw L'Ecume II, Commodore Goodwill and the RNLI in the area of the collision.

Mrs Michieli said the rest of the day was "a bit of a blur".

L'Ecume II was described as a "well maintained" vessel

Jonathan De La Haye was on one of the vessels which aided in the search for L'Ecume II after the collision took place.

The fisherman told the court he heard the distress call from Commodore Goodwill when he was out at St Brelade Bay at about 05:40 GMT.

He said he "headed straight to the coordinates the Coastguard gave out, where they presumed the collision happened".

Using an automatic identification system (AIS), Mr De La Haye said he could see L'Ecume II but then it lost signal.

"I tried to phone Mick on both, Jersey phone and English phone, and both were off."

He said he also texted him but had no response.

The trial continues.