Arrests made over body found following ship collision in Sweden

The Swedish Maritime Administration confirmed a second person is missing at sea.

Divers work on the capsized Danish cargo ship Karin Hoej (Johan Nilsson/TT via AP) (AP)

A body has been found after British and Danish cargo ships collided off southern Sweden

Swedish authorities confirmed another person is still missing at sea.

Two people have been arrested in connection with the suspected deaths of crew members following the collision, the Swedish Prosecution Service confirmed.

It is understood the Inverness-registered Scot Carrier collided with the Danish ship Karin Hoej south of Ystad, close to the Danish island of Bornholm, on Monday at about 2.30am (GMT).

At 3pm, the Swedish Maritime Administration (SMA) confirmed that a body had been found on the Karin Hoej as it was being towed to shore on Monday afternoon, but the other person is still reported missing.

The Swedish Prosecution Service (SPS) said two people, a British and a Croatian citizen, have been arrested on potential charges of causing the death of another person, gross negligence in maritime traffic and “gross sea drunkenness”.

British cargo ship Scot Carrier was involved in a collision with Danish cargo ship Karin Hoej, seen capsized in the background (Johan Nilsson/TT via AP) (AP)

The SPS confirmed the cause of the collision is unclear, and prosecutors are in the early stages of their investigation into what happened.

The Danish cargo ship capsized after the incident which prompted a major rescue mission, including a helicopter and ships.

Earlier today, a spokesman for SMA told the BBC that screams had been heard from the water after the collision.

“It is very cold and dark,” Jonas Franzen said. “The water is about 4C (39F) and the air is about 5C (41F).”

According to the website MarineTraffic, Scot Carrier was travelling from Salacgriva in Latvia to Montrose in Scotland while the Karin Hoej had left Sodertalje in Sweden for Nykoebing Falster in Denmark.

A spokesperson for Scotline, the owners of Scot Carrier, confirmed the shipping company has “an interest” on the ship, but refused to comment while an investigation into the collision is ongoing.

“The master, ship, crew and company are assisting and fully complying with local authorities as required,” the spokesperson added.