Ady Gil captain faces trial

The criminal trial against a Sea Shepherd Conservation Society captain began May 27 in Tokyo, but updates on the trial have yet to be made public.

Pete Bethune—captain of the Ady Gil, which was sunk by illegal Japanese whalers in January—has been held in a Tokyo maximum-security prison since he boarded the Shonan Maru 2 in February to present a bill for damages done to his ship.

Bethune was able to cause the whaler to prematurely halt its concurrent operation in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, but was arrested and charged with several crimes, including trespassing and property damage.

Two lawyers from the society’s Seattle-based firm, Harris & Moure, as well as the head of the firm’s Asia practice, will be present to act as translators and liaisons to Sea Shepherd in the United States.

Updates on this trial will appear in this column as they become available.