Baltimore bridge collapse: Dali companies plead not guilty in criminal case

Natalie Jones, Baltimore Sun on Jul 31, 2026

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BALTIMORE — Attorneys representing Synergy Marine Group and Synergy Maritime pleaded not guilty Friday to all counts in a superseding indictment in connection to the March 2024 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

In May, federal prosecutors charged the Singapore-based Synergy Marine Group, India-based Synergy Maritime and Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, a 47-year-old Indian citizen who served as the Dali’s technical superintendent with conspiracy, obstruction of an agency proceeding, false statements and willingly failing to immediately notify the U.S. Coast Guard of a known hazardous condition aboard the vessel.

Prosecutors filed a superseding indictment in June, which added more allegations.

The Dali lost power twice in four minutes before slamming into the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024, prosecutors allege.

A loose wire in a high-voltage switchboard likely triggered the first outage, investigators said in the indictment. Though the vessel briefly regained power, prosecutors allege its operators altered the ship’s fuel system to rely on a flushing pump that wasn’t designed for continuous operation.

The indictment also alleges that crew members and shore-side personnel concealed repeated safety problems that should have been reported to the Coast Guard. Additionally, it alleges that Nair falsely told National Transportation Safety Board investigators that he was not aware that the flushing pump had been used to supply the ship’s generators.

A criminal trial for the corporations and Nair is set to begin in October 2027.

However, earlier in July, Synergy Marine Group and Synergy Maritime sought to sever Nair from the case, arguing that it was uncertain if he would participate. Kelly Hayes, the U.S. Attorney for Maryland, said in May that the Department of Justice believes Nair is in India.

Bredar denied the request without prejudice Friday, which means it could be challenged again later.

Court filings show three crew members who were aboard the Dali when it struck the bridge — Stephen Jayakumar, Rohit Bisht, and Charles Vaz — are also seeking to complete depositions and be released from detention in the United States. The three mariners, who are Indian nationals and have remained in the United States under a security agreement, have not been criminally charged.

Federal prosecutors, meanwhile, argue that the crew members are not detained and are allowed to leave when they request it.

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