Vladimir Motin was captain of a cargo ship that hit a tanker, carrying jet fuel for the US military, off England in the North Sea at close to full speed this week.

LONDON (Reuters) -British police said on Friday they have charged the Russian captain of a container ship that crashed into a U.S. tanker earlier this week with manslaughter and gross negligence. The 59-year-old Vladimir Motin was captain of the Portuguese-flagged Solong that hit the Stena Immaculate tanker,

The captain of a cargo ship arrested after a collision in the North Sea is being held in custody for a further 24 hours "due to the complexities of the incident", police said. The 59-year-old Russian man was arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.