Sea Shepherd boarder faces assault charge

[FarCenter]

Kyodo News
The Japan Coast Guard plans to press an additional charge against an arrested Sea Shepherd Conservation Society member for inflicting injuries on Japanese whaling ship crew members in the Antarctic Ocean in February, sources said Thursday.

The Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office plans to indict antiwhaling activist Peter Bethune, 44, from New Zealand as early as Friday when his detention expires, the sources said.

Bethune has already been charged with trespassing aboard the Shonan Maru No. 2.

According to the sources, a video recording by Japanese whalers Feb. 11 showed the suspect throw bottles containing butyric acid at the vessel from the antiwhaling vessel the Steve Irwin. The video also allegedly showed Shonan Maru crew members getting hurt by the acid.

Although it wasn't clear any of the bottles Bethune threw cause any injuries, both the coast guard and prosecutors judged that his actions constituted injurious assault.

<SNIP>http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100402a4.html

[KittyWampus]

1. oh brother "it wasn't clear any bottles- caused any injuries" Why don't they charge him w/littering

while they are at it.

Not fond of Sea Shepherd's tactics at this point, but come on .