Ship meant to house police for G7 summit seized over poor conditions

Ship meant to house police for G7 summit seized over poor conditions

A ship that had been set to host more than 2,000 police officers providing security at this week's Group of Seven leaders' summit was impounded on Wednesday after complaints over poor conditions aboard, police said.

The officers were meant to be accommodated on the Mykonos Magic ship -- renamed Goddess of the Night -- docked in the city of Brindisi, some 60 kilometres (37.28 miles) from Borgo Egnazia, a luxury resort in the southern Puglia region which will host the G7 meeting on June 13-15.

Earlier this week, unions bemoaned poor sanitary conditions aboard, saying many cabins could not be used, that there were water leaks, unusable toilets and broken air conditioning, forcing those onboard to be moved to hotels and another ship.

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Initial investigations showed "significant hygienic-sanitary criticalities and serious accommodation deficiencies," which could amount to the crime of fraud in public supply, a police statement said.

Police said the vessel had been seized following an order from prosecutors in Brindisi to allow further investigations.

In an earlier statement, police also said they were considering taking legal action against the owner of the ship. Italian media reported the government had paid around 6 million euros ($6.46 million) to rent it for the duration of the G7.

Reuters was unable to locate contact information for the company identified by police as owners of the ship.