In its weekly piracy report for 16-22 February, ReCAAP ISC informed of two incidents of armed robbery against ships in Asia. Both were CAT 4 incidents, where the perpetrators were not armed and the crew not harmed.
One of the incidents occurred to a container ship while berthed at the Port of Jakarta, Indonesia. The other incident occurred onboard a barge towed by a tug boat while underway in the eastbound lane of the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) in the Singapore Strait.
The Indonesian Navy while on patrol in the area, spotted the perpetrators’ boats alongside the barge. They boarded the barge, conducted a search and arrested the perpetrators.
Incident #1
The first incident involves the Singaporean-flagged container ship ALS Juventus, while at Port of Jakarta, Indonesia, on 13 February.
While at berth, the third officer reported that the padlock hinge for the passageway door leading to the engine room was broken.
There was no sign of any perpetrators onboard or nearby. Spare parts for auxiliary engine were reported missing.
Incident #2
The second incident involved the Malaysian tug boat TB Danum 50 and barge TK Linau 133, on 21 February. While in the eastbound lane of Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) around Karang Banteng waters, Riau Islands, Indonesia, two small boats came alongside the barge.
The Indonesian Navy Marine Security Patrol Kri Siwar-646 was conducting routine patrol in the area when they spotted three perpetrators onboard the barge and two others were in the boat loading some items from the barge into the boat.
A search was carried out and the five perpetrators were arrested. The two small boats were seized and about 150 kg of the stolen steel wires were recovered.
Incident outside Asia
During 16-22 February, one attempted incident outside Asia was reported to the ReCAAP ISC by ReCAAP Focal Point (Singapore), on 19 February. The incident occurred on 19 February to the Singaporean-flagged bulk carrier Nord Summit, while underway off Harnish Islands in the Red Sea.
While underway, the shipboard duty officer spotted a skiff approaching the ship. The ship took evasive measures, switched on its lights and sounded its horn. The skiff then stopped its pursuit. The crew was not injured, and the ship not damaged.
