3 pirates loot ship, threaten crew in mid-sea

Three pirates loot ship, threaten crew in mid-sea
TNN Dec 8, 2019 https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/rajkot/three-pirates-loot-ship-...

The pirates also threatened to physically assault the ship’s crew

Rajkot: Kandla marine police registered an offence against three persons on Thursday night booking them for carrying out mid-sea piracy on a cargo ship off the coast between Kandla port in Kutch district and Navlakhi port in Morbi district on November 13 night.

According to the marine police, the three pirates, whose identities are yet to be established, laid siege to the ship named ‘MV Jeetsagar’ belonging to Jamnagar-based Shriji Shipping Company. “They boarded the ship and looted barrels containing 190 litre diesel and a cellphone worth Rs 5,000,” said an official from Kandla marine police station.

The ship from Navlakhi port had gone to Kandla to upload coal supply from a ship. When it neared the Kandla port, pirates in eight boats surrounded the ship. A complaint in this regard was lodged by Shankar Chaudhary, who said that the pirates warned them not to return to Kandla again as his ship would break the fishing net cast by the fishermen.

“The pirates also threatened to physically assault the ship’s crew, if they dared to return to Kandla again,” the police official added.

Chaudhary approached the police late as he did not know where to lodge a complaint on piracy. After Jamnagar-based Shreeji Shipping Company found out that the piracy had taken place within Kandla marine police station jurisdiction, Chaudhary lodged his complaint there. “We will check on the fishermen who had gone for fishing on that day to ascertain the identities of the accused,” the marine police official added.