Pirates attack 2 ships in S'pore Strait but flee empty-handed

Pirates attack 2 ships in S'pore Strait but flee empty-handed
Fabian Koh 24 Dec 2019 https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/pirates-attack-2-ships-in-spore-s...

Under the cover of darkness, pirates attacked two vessels separately in the Singapore Strait yesterday, bringing the total number of such incidents to five in just four days.

The latest attacks, which happened just after midnight and within two hours of each other, involved a bulk carrier and a tanker.

The pirates tied up crew members as they attempted to rob the ships but left empty-handed when the alarm was sounded in both instances.

The Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) Information Sharing Centre had also issued alerts earlier following three separate incidents in the Singapore Strait last Friday.

"Of the three ships that were boarded, two were bulk carriers and one was a tanker. Due to the proximity of the incidents, the same group of perpetrators responsible for the incidents on Dec 20 cannot be ruled out," the Singapore-based organisation said.

The ReCAAP centre, which shares information to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships at sea, also said it was possible that the same group of perpetrators was responsible for the attacks yesterday "due to the close proximity and short time interval between the two incidents".

It added that there have been 29 incidents in the strait this year.

Of these, 15 were travelling in the westbound lane, while 14 were in the eastbound lane of the Singapore Strait.

The first incident yesterday occurred at 12.12am.

The tanker Bamzi was passing through the strait when the chief engineer and duty engineer spotted three perpetrators in the engine room, one of them with a knife.

The tanker had been travelling from Nipa anchorage in Indonesia to Qingdao, China.

The crew members raised the ship's alarm and the three intruders fled immediately.

Two of the vessel's motormen were later found tied up.

After the crew conducted a search and ensured there were no more perpetrators on board, the Bamzi resumed its journey, with the crew safe and nothing stolen.

At 1.54am, bulk carrier Trust Star was in the strait when the crew spotted six perpetrators on board.

The crew members raised the alarm and the six intruders fled.

The intruders had tied up two crew members in the engine room, who freed themselves later.

Unsure if intruders were still on board the vessel, the ship master deviated the bulk carrier from its route, and it was escorted by the Republic of Singapore Navy and Singapore Police Coast Guard (PCG) to the port of Singapore.

PCG officers then boarded the ship and confirmed there were no more perpetrators on board after a search.

No crew member was hurt and nothing was stolen.

In its statement, the ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre said it "advises all ships to exercise enhanced vigilance, adopt extra precautionary measures and report all incidents immediately to the nearest coastal state".

It also recommended that law enforcement agencies of the littoral states step up surveillance, increase patrols, and enhance cooperation and coordination among them to respond promptly to incidents.