Sucuoğlu: Sunken ferry may have suffered unreported accident after inspection

Speaking on Kıbrıs Postası TV, Sucuoğlu said the vessel had been inspected around two-and-a-half to three months before the disaster and had been certified as fit to operate the route.

However, he said information received since the sinking indicated that the vessel later suffered a minor accident.

“The information reaching us — and of course the police have much more detail — is that it had a small accident and this was not reported to anyone,” Sucuoğlu said.

He stressed that the significance of the alleged incident, as well as any possible responsibility on the part of Turkish Lloyd or others, would only become clear once the police investigation was completed.

Sucuoğlu also addressed criticism of the inspection regime, saying Turkish Lloyd had carried out extensive checks on other vessels connected with the operator.

He said one vessel in Mersin had been inspected continuously for four days, with virtually every part of the ship examined before it was cleared to return to service.

The minister said no action had yet been taken against the operating company, although this could change depending on the outcome of the investigation.

“These are all matters that will emerge as a result of the investigation,” he said.

Sucuoğlu insisted the inquiry would be pursued to the end and that any criminal or administrative sanctions deemed necessary would follow.

“Whatever comes out of this, the investigation will continue to the end,” he said. “Otherwise we cannot answer to anyone. We could not answer to our own conscience either.”

The latest official figures put the death toll from the August 30 disaster at 18, with 10 people still missing. The Prime Ministry announced on October 1 that DNA testing had identified one of the most recently recovered bodies as missing passenger Ferdi Törer, raising the confirmed number of fatalities to 18.

The Kyrenia ferry disaster remains under investigation, with particular attention now focusing on the vessel’s inspection history and whether the reported post-inspection accident should have triggered a fresh assessment.