Italian judge orders trial for captain of Costa Concordia

A judge in Italy has ordered that the captain of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia will stand trial.

Bloomberg reported that the trial of Francesco Schettino will begin on July 9 in Grosseto, Italy.

He faces criminal charges including manslaughter and abandoning the ship before all the 4,200 passengers had been evacuated. 32 people were killed in the disaster.

He is accused of steering the ship too closely to the island as a way of saluting the inhabitants and a veteran captain of the Costa line. Schettino has always denied any wrongdoing, claiming his actions saved lives.

The vessel ran aground near the island of Giglio hours after leaving a port near Rome on January 13 last year.

Last month it emerged Costa Cruises had made a deal with an Italian court to limit its criminal liability for the capsizing of the vessel for a fine of €1 million.

The plea bargain payment means the cruise line will not face any more criminal charges and will now aim to participate in trials as an injured party.