In the case of the deliberate arson of the US Navy ship Bonhomme Richard in July 2020, new details emerged
In July 2020, a major fire started on the American amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard, moored in the port of San Diego, which was extinguished only four days later. As a result of the incident, the ship burned out by 65%, about 60 sailors and civilians were injured, and experts estimated the cost of restoration work at $3 billion. The $4,1 billion ship was sold for scrap for $3,66 million.
Rookie sailor Ryan Mays, 19, was charged with deliberate arson while cleaning the ship with several other sailors that day. The prosecutor's office demanded a life sentence for him, Mace denies his guilt. The American newspaper Los Angeles Times reports that new circumstances have appeared in the case that may indicate the innocence of Mays.
Two witnesses testified for the defense at a military tribunal on Monday who saw Mays in camouflage shortly before the fire started. This contradicts the testimony of another eyewitness, who claims that a sailor who looked like Mays went down into the hold, where the fire later broke out, dressed in blue overalls.
He was the only one not wearing a (blue) jumpsuit
Matthew Gonzalez, a former petty officer 3rd class, who was cleaning the ship with Mays that day, said at the trial.
According to his testimony, Boatswain's Mate 2nd Class Christopher Irwin was on duty on the flight deck during the call to duty. He said he also saw Mays in green camouflage.
The prosecution is building an evidence base based on the testimony of one witness, Petty Officer 2nd Class Kenji Velasco. He said he saw a man he believed to be Mays descend the ramp into the lower Bonhomme Richard vehicle storage area, where investigators said the fire had started, just 20 minutes before he saw smoke. At the same time, the sailor was dressed in blue overalls and was holding a bucket, presumably with a flammable substance.
A U.S. Navy investigation found that while the Bonhomme Richard fire was caused by arson, it reached disastrous consequences because the crew was unable to extinguish the fire due to insufficient preparation. The Navy Department report emphasizes that "the loss of the ship could have been prevented." This could not be done due to poor preparation of the team for such situations. In connection with this, it was recommended that 36 people be subjected to disciplinary sanctions, including commander Bonhomme Richard and five admirals fleet.
If now the only suspect in the arson of the ship is acquitted at the trial, it will turn out that the investigation has reached a dead end, and the US Navy could not even formally justify the huge losses, which, in fact, were the result of negligence at all levels of the work of the naval department. Such recognition is in no way acceptable for the "greatest fleet in the world." But the facts are stubborn things, cases of loss of ships and loss of life due to poor crew training and other organizational problems in the US Navy occur regularly.
Already on July 30, 2020, a new tragedy happened in the US Navy. During the exercises of the units of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force of the US Navy off the coast of California, an amphibious combat vehicle, an AAV7 tracked amphibious vehicle, sank. Only three Marines managed to get out of it, one of whom died after being rescued. Nine people were found inside the amphibious hull only on August 5 - after the armored car was found at a depth of 117 meters.
- Alexander Grigoryev
- https://www.flickr.com/photos/usnavy/35646532324
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