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D. Further Information received from Sweden, Finland and Estonia after the Publication of our Report |
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| 18. The Interrogation of the JAIC Key Witness Silver Linde before a Finnish Court - Page 3 |
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After the Sinking
- We were taken to some kind of island near Turku, we were there for quite some long time, we went to sauna and we were allowed to phone home and we left all our clothes there. That island was full of Swedish signs, the road signs were all in Swedish, we went onboard a ferry, it took us only 10-15 minutes to get to Turku. It was like a base for rescue service, there were a kitchen and a sauna and a landing area for helicopters and … No, I don’t think it was Utö. Some island starting with the letter ‘L’.
3. The various interrogations and the forced change of his time.
In the interview Linde explained this as follows:
- First they started the investigation by taking the first testimony in Turku hospital I was giving testimony and they started nagging me. I had given testimony to the Estonian Criminal Police. …
- Yes, home from Turku. They all left before us. There were 16 persons on the lifeboat and four of us were left there. That Henrik Sillaste, he was a machine operator from the machine team, I don’t know. The watch-engineer, that Treu and that motorman Hannes Kadak and me. Well, we were taken to the general cross-examination, well, in Turku.
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| During the court investigation he stated about the Turku questionings: |
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| Gahmberg: |
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Speaking about the interrogation or investigation that was carried out after that sea accident. To whom did you make your first statements? I give you here four alternatives: the Estonian Security Police, the Finnish Criminal Police, the Investigation Board or Committee or someone else? |
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| Linde: |
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That is, at first there was, as far I can remember, a Finnish policeman in civilian clothes and he was accompanied by an Estonian-Russian interpreter whose Estonian was, however, rather poor so that sometimes I had to correct him and help him out. Therefore, it was easier to speak Russian to him, that he would have understood better and it could have been translated for the Finnish policeman from Russian. Then, on the same day or on the following day, a youngish Estonian policeman in plain clothes turned up.
After we had been in that hospital for two days, they brought clothes for the others as they did not have anything else but hospital clothes, and they were taken home by plane, and the four of us were told that we would be interrogated by the Turku police.
That is, there were many representatives sitting there at that table, Finnish and Estonian and English was spoken there, then we were one by one called inside and the table there was such that there were people speaking so many languages, and I cannot tell which organisations or parties they represented. |
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Note: This was the interrogation by the JAIC, which ended with a clash when Andi Meister stopped the questioning, took the four crew survivors and drove to the Airport. See Chapter 37.1, pages 1242 ff. of our Report. |
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| Linde: |
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First they asked me what my duty was on that ship. Then I told them that I was something like a watchman, I was in the bar. Then when I came to talk about the bump on the ship, at that stage the Estonian policeman said that, wait a moment, we'll soon go on, then he left the room to make a telephone call, he was away for a couple of minutes, but I have no idea what he possibly telephoned during that time. |
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About the interrogation in Tallinn in the interview:
- Finally we arrived in Tallinn by some kind of plane. Karmi from the Transport Police was waiting for us. He told us to give our testimony straight away. I was feeling very badly and asked whether this could be done later. He told me to write on a piece of paper: “I refuse to give any testimony.” I was treated like a criminal. After were arrived from Turku I did not sign any paper. Meister was on that plane. I have not met him again after that. We were in Gothenburg together with Treu, Kadak and Neidre from the Marine Department as attendant. It was still in 1994 when the Estonian police came, I don’t know whether it was the Defence Police. I was taken there and back by a private car, all men were in civilian clothes and nobody introduced himself. I’ll tell you that they were very arrogant and I was cross-examined like … I cannot even say like what. I was lucky enough to be taken back home, I already got a strange feeling when I was told to sign the papers with my statement “I am not telling lies” and when they were talking about some misleading testimonies. Well, I was afraid that that was it. I could only think of getting out of that room as quickly as possible.
Yes, it was some time in November or October when I went to Tallinn, people from the Estonian Maritime Administration and others were there and they asked questions, strange questions like: how many windows were blown away by the pressure of the water when you were sliding down the side … well, and other strange questions of similar kind which I, of course, did not answer. Neidre was attending us, to my mind he was an attendant. I cannot describe his position. He came with us by plane and was just there. He must have organized things on board as Mare Balticum belonged to the ESCO, he was like a representative when we went to Gothenburg, Well, something like that. I cannot say what his real position was …..
They were talking about five minutes it could have been more, I don’t remember, but there was a difference in time by all means.
They were of the blood of soviet times with a distrustful face. Well, the same time as now. They were telling me about that time difference as if I was easily fooled, well, they asked questions as if I had committed a serious crime. They were brainwashing me with that difference in time. They collected me twice to come over and both cross-examinations were three hours long. He was sticking to his foolish story about that five .. ten and I don’t know what he was talking about. The exact time my watch was showing. “How many seconds did it take you to run upstairs? Questions like that as if I was supposed to look at the watch while I was running.
In spring 1995 I was working on the ferry Tallink when that Karmi came onboard, took me to Tallinn and to the Transport Police, to some institution in Pagari Street. He started nagging me again and told me his story and would not believe mine. He was after something like “5 minutes” which was the difference to my time. He was very persistent and came onboard several times and took me to that place to convince me that I was wrong and somebody else was right. He said that my watch was 5 minutes wrong and I told him that I was not running with my watch in front of my eyes. So the time was 5 minutes later.
Some time later I met one of my crew survivor colleagues in Tallinn who said that he had been phoned by a Swedish survivor who asked: “Why did Silver change the right time?” I answered that the police were responsible for that and that I was tired of all that.
I was staying at home for some time … and now it was the Defence Police who started to disturb my family at home, even at half past eight in the evening. They started nagging me again and asked me to write: “I am not telling lies.”
I was finally so tired of going to the police time and again and told them: “Do whatever you want to, you will get your bonus and whatever. They kept blaming me for being like the captain, because I had made for downstairs and how heartless I was and that I had not cared for the ferry.
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