Six pirates armed with AK-47 rifles in a black hull speed boat approached and attempted to board a crude oil tanker several times, while the vessel was underway, around 25 nautical miles Southeast of Brass, Nigeria, on 19 February.
The pirates made seven attempts to hook an aluminum ladder on the tanker’s railing, but were unsuccessful due to the evasive manoeuvres taken by the Master, according to IMB Piracy Reporting Centre. They then, fired upon at the tanker and moved away.
The Master raised the alarm, activated SSAS, transmitted distress message, increased speed, took evasive manoeuvres and crew secured all access doors.
A Nigerian Navy boat was in contact with the tanker and arrived at the location. The tanker and crew are reported safe.
Nigerian waters have been identified as a key area of concern for maritime security in recent months, with IMB reporting 10 incidents of kidnapping involving 65 crew members and 7 vessels fired upon in the Gulf of Guinea throughout 2017.
In January 2018, the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker ‘MT Barrett’ went missing in Nigerian waters and the owner, Union Maritime, confirmed that the ship had been subject of a piracy attack. It was eventually released from pirates, after captivity of six days, with all crew safe.
A few days later, in early February, the oil tanker ‘Marine Express’, operated by Hong Kong-based Anglo-Eastern, went missing in the same region and was suspected to be hijacked. The ship went back under the command of the captain and crew five days later and everyone was safe. The company launched an investigation in cooperation with Nigerian and Beninese authorities.
