Five people have been charged with causing environmental damage to the ocean.

The Colombo High Court today indicted five people for causing damage to the country's oceanic environment, including the captain of the fire-ravaged container ship MV X-Press Perl and four other directors of the vessel's local agent.

Meanwhile, High Court Judge Damith Thotawatte issued summons to three other accused who did not appear in court today, ordering them to appear on December 12.

Five accused who were present before the court were ordered to be released on two sureties of one million rupees each, and they were prevented from leaving the country.

The Attorney General had filed indictments against eight people accused of committing offences under the Marine Pollution Prevention Act.

In this case, the Attorney General had named

Eight people have been charged, including the captain of the container ship MV X-Press Perl and four other directors of Sea Consortium Lanka (Pvt) Ltd., the vessel's local agent