United States federal prosecutors unsealed an 18 count criminal indictment charging the operators of the cargo ship Dali and a senior employee over the catastrophic March 2024 collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge. The indictment targets Singapore based Synergy Marine Pte Ltd and its India based affiliate, alongside the vessel's shoreside technical superintendent, Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair. The criminal counts include conspiracy to defraud the US, misconduct resulting in death (seaman's manslaughter), making false statements, and environmental violations.   

The Department of Justice alleges that company officials deliberately cut corners on safety and intentionally relied on an unapproved fuel "flushing pump" that was not designed for continuous use or automatic restart after a blackout. Investigators assert that the ship experienced two electrical blackouts in port just one day before the fatal voyage, a hazardous condition the operators willfully hid from the US Coast Guard. According to prosecutors, if proper fuel supply pumps had been functioning normally, the 100,000 ton vessel likely would have restored mechanical power in time to avoid the support column crash that killed six highway workers. 

In response to the indictment, Synergy Marine Group strongly rejected the charges and accused the US government of trying to "criminalize a tragic accident". The company stated that the event was a maritime casualty that should be resolved through standard regulatory records rather than selective mischaracterizations in a criminal court. This criminal prosecution is separate from the civil sector, where the ship operators and owners recently agreed to a major $2.25 billion civil settlement with the state of Maryland to address the massive infrastructure damage.