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Whale-watcher ‘hero’ who survived 67 days on inflatable dinghy with corpses of his brother & nephew faces years in jail
THE whale watcher “hero” who survived 67 days at sea surrounded by the bodies of his family is facing jail over the deaths of his nephew and brother on the voyage.
Mikhail Pichugin, 45, from Russia, managed to survive more than two months in the sea of Okhotsk in a 15ft inflatable vessel after the engine cut out.
Mikhail Pichugin speaking to reporters from his hospital bed in Magaden in October[/caption] Pichugin was filmed as he came aside the trawler to be winched up to safety after over two months stranded at sea[/caption] The moment Pichugin was taken off the Angel in a stretcher into a waiting ambulance[/caption]Pichugin was dubbed a hero in Russia a mere few months ago when he was found close to death after drifting hundreds of miles in the Sea of Okhotsk.
But now he faces up to seven years jail for allegedly causing their deaths on an adventure trip to watch whales in their natural habitat.
On board his tiny vessel when he was found were the bodies of his nephew Ilya, 16, who succumbed to starvation, and the boy’s father Sergei Pichugin, 49.
The family members were returning from a whale-watching trip near the remote Shantar Islands when their motor stopped working 37 miles from shore.
Ilya “had hardly eaten” and “died of starvation,” according to Mash media, citing Mikhail’s account to his rescuers.
It added: “After that his father went crazy – Sergei was crying, screaming and jumping into the water.
“Mikhail pulled him out of the water, warmed him up, tried to feed him, but he refused to do so, and after 10 days he also died.”
But now prosecutors have gone after Mikhail, accusing him of violating the rules of sea transport, and consequently causing the death of his brother and nephew.
Instead of being a witness in a criminal case, he has been made the suspect due to his alleged failure to comply with rules.
The whale-watcher survivor said in what appears to be a confession: “As a result of my violations of navigation, my brother Sergei and his son Ilya died.”
His inflatable boat apparently shouldn’t have gone more than three kilometres – less than two miles – from the coast.
When the engine broke he was 37 miles from the shore, reports claim.
Pichugin only survived the lack of food on board because he was overweight, reports said at the time.
He added: “I lost my relatives, it’s hard for me.
“They also want to put me in jail.
“I understand that I violated the law.
“I sailed too far from the shore.”
But Pichugin made it clear that his brother and nephew “died not because I went too far out to sea but due to a combination of circumstances”.
Sergey Pichugin, 49, died on the boat as it drifted in the Sea of Okhotsk[/caption] Ilya Pichugin, 15, pictured wearing a sash at a celebration before he died onboard the small boat[/caption]Previously, it was revealed that Pichugin covered the two bodies and tied them to the vessel to prevent them from going overboard.
As his vessel drifted at least 625 miles over 67 days, Pichugin lost 50kg, about half of his body weight.
He revealed that he survived only on the rainwater he collected, soaked dried peas, and freeze-fried noodles.
Despite this, Pichugin’s condition was described as “satisfactory” when he arrived at the hospital at the time, which experts called a double miracle.
“There are two real miracles here,” said Dmitry Lisitsyn, the head of Sakhalin Environment Watch, in October.
“The first is that such a small, uncontrolled boat was not capsized in the stormy autumn Sea of Okhotsk after more than two months of drifting.
“The second is that someone on this boat survived.”
When asked if he had any wishes, the whale watcher said it was “to be discharged from hospital and get home to bury my brother and nephew.”
Pichugin was wired up to monitors as he spoke about his ordeal[/caption] The whale-watcher was found surrounded by the bodies of his older brother and teenage nephew[/caption] Pichugin was filmed weakly shouting to the crewmen on the trawler during the nighttime rescue[/caption]Towie stars spark engagement rumours with ‘clue’ on romantic date night
TOWIE fans are convinced Roman Hackett and Matilda Draper are already thinking about marriage after spotting a big clue.
The reality couple, who confirmed their romance last month, looks like they’re in it for the long haul.
Matilda Draper and Roman Hackett enjoyed a romantic date night[/caption] The pair have sparked engagement rumours after just months of dating[/caption]During a date night, Roman showed off an ‘eternity’ tattoo and wrote ‘wifey’ as he held hands with his beau in a new post.
The pair looked loved up as they dined at a swanky Essex restaurant.
Just days ago, Matilda shared photos as she tried on wedding dresses.
Alongside a crying face emoji, a delighted Matilda wrote: “Got to try on April Banbury’s new bridal collection and I can’t cope.”
April is a wedding dress designer who appeared on Married At First Sight UK.
The Sun revealed in December that Matilda was the latest star to join the ITVBe family on the long-running Essex reality show.
In exclusive photos, TV hunk Roman wastes no time is sharing his new blossoming romance with his co-stars for the brand new series.
Matilda looked stunning as she took to the cameras for the first time for a cameo role in the first episode.
The pair were spotted filming scenes at an Essex bar, as Roman introduced Matilda to some of his fellow cast members.
And ex Dani, who Roman briefly dated in 2023, was amongst the first to be introduced to his new girlfriend.
What could have been awkward encounter, appeared to be quite pleasant, with the trio smiling and laughing.
Dani was even seen giving Roman a warm embrace and seemed to be getting on like a house on fire.
Lovebirds Matilda and Roman later enjoyed some alone time, packing on the PDA with a little kiss.
Matilda, who appeared on Love Island last summer, went public with her relationship last month.
It comes after the brunette bombshell revealed she dropped out of All Stars talks after bagging herself a Towie star boyfriend.
Matilda said on Not My Bagg podcast last week: “I was speaking to them before, before I got with Ro and then as soon as I got with Ro, I just thought, ‘There’s no point.’
“I had the best time of my whole entire life. Do you know what I mean? I had the best time ever. It was literally like a six week holiday. I always had my feet up, I loved life. It was funny.
“I don’t think you realise how much you miss it until you miss it. Because some days, I don’t know, some days I’m like, ‘No I’d never,’ but then I’m like, ‘Oh, get me back in there.’
“When I watch it, back it’s just such a special feeling cos you would never do that otherwise.
“But All Stars is so different. It would never be the same.”
Matilda was coupled up with sweet salesman Sean Stone on Love Island – but just months later she was accused of dumping him by text.
Matilda has joined ITVBe’s Towie with boyfriend Roman[/caption]