A year ago, on this day, the fishing vessel Adrianna, believed to be carrying close to 750 migrants from Libya to Europe, sank in international waters 75 kilometers off Pylos in southern Greece.
While only 82 bodies were recovered and 104 people rescued, it is believed that some 500 were lost at sea, making it one of the worst tragedies in European waters.
Nine Egyptian nationals were accused of causing the shipwreck last year. They were charged with being members of a criminal organization, facilitating illegal entry into Greece, and intentionally causing the shipwreck.
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FILE- Survivors of a shipwreck sleep at a warehouse at the port in Kalamata town, about 240 kilometers (150 miles) southwest of Athens, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. /AP Photos/Thanassis Stavrakis
For six days Seyed Ahmed was cramped in an old, dilapidated metal fishing boat, barely having room to move. People screaming, children crying and some even falling sick.
That's what remembers before ending up in the sea unconscious.
"We were held at gunpoint, and then they took us on the boat. The first day was a good day. The next day, the difficulties began," Shipwreck survivor Seyed Ahmed told CGTN. "The boat was falling apart. I was on the second floor, and I saw hundreds of people when I walked down. Men, women, families with children, crying, coughing it is hard. The boat was too crowded It was a hard trip. Some died during the trip. No matter what I tell you, I don't want to think about it. I'm trying to forget," he added.
After being rescued and treated at a local hospital, he was then accused of causing the shipwreck, something that was proven a year later to be wrong.
"The year I spent in prison was the worst year of my life. We were six in a room, all of us ate and went to the washroom there. It was hard," Shipwreck survivor Seyed Ahmed told CGTN. "It was impossible to communicate with my family and children I spent a year without talking to my son. Initially, we were told that we would be sentenced to 25 years and 30 years. So many for what? Trying to have a better life. But thanks to our lawyer, we are now free," he added.
FILE- A survivors of a shipwreck washes his face outside a warehouse at the port in Kalamata town, about 240 kilometers (150miles) southwest of Athens on Wednesday, June 14, 2023. /AP Photos/Thanassis Stavrakis
Eventually, all the charges were dropped as they couldn't be tried in Greece since the incident took place in international waters. The focus now is on the Hellenic Coast Guard and whether they did their job right.
"Preliminarily, nine of the prosecution witnesses in their testimony never mentioned the word towing," LAWYER ON THE CASE SPYROS PANTAZIS told CGTN. "But the word tow was mentioned when they went to the investigator.There was a vessel sailing for 15 hours and nothing happened. The Coast Guard patrol boat was close by at the time in question, with no cameras, what more can say, I leave it for you to conclude," he added.
CGTN requested a comment by the Hellenic Coast Guard but was denied.
While we may never find out what happened, how the boat capsized, and who is responsible, what we do know is that a year on, more than 500 people will never be reunited with their loved ones.
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