Malacca attack sparks kidnap and ransom fears
Marcus Hand, Singapore - Monday 23 February 2009
http://www.lloydslist.com/ll/news/malacca-attack-sparks-kidnap-and-ranso...
TWO crew members kidnapped by pirates from tug and barge in the Malacca Strait have been freed but there are fears that attacks could increase with the economic downturn.
The Indonesian master and chief engineer of the Singapore-registered tug MLC-Nancy 5 were kidnapped by pirates in broad daylight at 1430 hrs on February 19 when 12 armed pirates stormed their vessel in the northern part of Malacca Strait.
The pirates also stole all of the vessel’s communications equipment and personal belongings of the crew.
The remaining crew of 10 onboard the vessel were unharmed in the attack and able to make it to the Malaysian port of Penang.
The Regional Co-operation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia information-sharing centre confirmed that the two crew members had been released.
It said the vessel’s agent had done all it could to secure the seafarers’ release, but that details of how this was achieved were not available. It was not know whether a ransom was paid.
Arrangements are being made for the two crew members to travel home and be reunited with their families.
1 comment:
There will be more kidnappings in the future if the imbalance between the poor and the rich widens. After Somali did a very successful affair in kidnapping, here comes again striking kidnappers in the Malacca Strait where sometime early 1990s was a favorite place for hunting kidnap prey.
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