The cargo ship that brought 2,750 lots of ammonium nitrate to Beirut that took off on Tuesday with devastating effects was abandoned in 2014 by a Russian business owner now based in Cyprus, according to numerous reports.

The former captain of the MV Rhosus, Boris Prokoshev, identified Igor Grechushkin as the owner of the ship in an interview with the Russian edition of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty on Wednesday.

Prokoshev said Grechushkin now resides in Cyprus, a common destination for rich Russians.

Organization Expert was unable to reach Grechushkin for comment, and a LinkedIn profile with his name was non-active. CNN said its calls to him were not successful.

But Prokoshev stated that after the team set sail, the journey was not considered lucrative enough.

In Beirut, inspectors discovered the ship to be unseaworthy and disallowed it from sailing even more. Some of the team members were released, but Prokoshev stated that he and 3 others were stuck there for 11 months.

” We can say that he left us in a purposefully unsafe scenario, doomed us to cravings,” he said.

Prokoshev said Lebanese port authorities took pity on the seafarers and fed them.

However Grechushkin abandoned the vessel and its explosive cargo. The ammonium nitrate was moved into storage, where it stayed up until it exploded on Tuesday, Service Expert reported

Prokoshev, a Ukrainian, said he satisfied Grechushkin in2013 The Rhosus’ whole team was changing, and Grechushkin did not point out that this was due to the fact that of earlier “nonpayment of wages,” Prokoshev declared.

The Siberian Times on Wednesday published a picture it said was of Grechushkin, presenting on a motorbike. Company Expert was unable to verify whether the image is authentic.

— The Siberian Times (@siberian_times) August 5, 2020