Gunmen attacked and boarded a refrigerated
cargo ship underway off the Niger Delta and kidnapped four crew members on
October 19, maritime intelligence company Dryad Maritime reports.
cargo ship underway off the Niger Delta and kidnapped four crew members on
October 19, maritime intelligence company Dryad Maritime reports.
The pirates stole cash, destroyed
equipment and kidnapped two Lithuanian and two Ukrainian sailors before
escaping.
equipment and kidnapped two Lithuanian and two Ukrainian sailors before
escaping.
This is the first incident reported at sea
off the Niger Delta in five months and has taken place 100nm further west than
the spate of kidnappings which took place earlier this year.
off the Niger Delta in five months and has taken place 100nm further west than
the spate of kidnappings which took place earlier this year.
It comes at a time when the Nigerian Navy
is conducting increased patrols of the approaches to the Bonny River, and these
patrols may have forced the gang to look into operating in this wider area of
West Africa.
is conducting increased patrols of the approaches to the Bonny River, and these
patrols may have forced the gang to look into operating in this wider area of
West Africa.
This area has a recent history of maritime
attacks with six reported cases of attacks on vessels, where 13 crew members
were abducted for the purpose of ransom
in 2014 alone.
attacks with six reported cases of attacks on vessels, where 13 crew members
were abducted for the purpose of ransom
in 2014 alone.
According to Dryad, this incident marks a
return to attacks for West Africa, an area that has experienced low levels of
maritime crime in the last three months.
return to attacks for West Africa, an area that has experienced low levels of
maritime crime in the last three months.
