A 38-YEAR-old motorist has been given a five-year suspended jail sentence for the manslaughter of his passenger who drowned when his car left the cross-river ferry in Cork Harbour almost two years ago.
Sebastian Loniewski, a married father of one, from Carrigbeg apartments, Sunday’s Well, Cork pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Krystian Mielnik (28), at the River Lee, Carrigaloe, Cobh on March 8th, 2009.
Sgt Ray Coughlan yesterday, told Cork Circuit Criminal Court that Loniewski, a Polish national, was dropping Mr Mielnik home to Cobh after playing a game of soccer in Passage West and he drove his car on to the Glenbrook to Carrigaloe ferry about 6.20pm on the day in question.
Midway across the channel, Loniewski’s car, which was at the front of one of the rows, accelerated under a safety barrier and up the ramp at the front of the ferry with its front wheels going over the ramp, balancing there for a moment before toppling into the river.
Loniewski was rescued by a member of the public who saw the incident and launched his boat. He was later taken to hospital for treatment and tests showed that he had no alcohol or drugs in his system.
Mr Mielnik, who was also from Poland, perished and his body was never recovered.
Loniewski told gardaí that the ferry was hit by a wave and although the handbrake was on, the car slipped on the wet floor and he panicked and instead of putting his foot on the brake, put it on the accelerator and the car went up the ramp.
However, other witnesses said they saw no wave hitting the car ferry and when the car was recovered from the river bed some 10-months later, it was found that the ignition was on, the car was in second gear and the handbrake was off, said Sgt Coughlan.
Department of the Marine investigators had examined the car ferry and concluded that it was impossible for a car to gather enough momentum go over the ramp simply by rolling forward on the ferry and would have to be driven forward to go up the ramp, the court was told.
Tom Creed SC, counsel for Loniewski, pleaded for leniency. “He must have innocently hit the accelerator and gone off the boat because it would have been an act of pure insanity to drive his car off the boat in circumstances where he could not swim.”
Judge Patrick Moran noted evidence from Sgt Coughlan that such incidents were highly unusual not just in Ireland but in an international context and he noted that Loniewski, who had used the ferry five or six times previously, accepted responsibility for his actions.
The judge imposed a five-year sentence but suspended it on condition that Loniewski be of good behaviour for two years.
