BUNKER TANKER MASTER MURDERED

[proud_ionian]

source: MGN

DURING another violent week a tanker master was murdered and the fate of several fishermen is unknown, according to the latest report from the ICC International Maritime Bureau.

Last Tuesday in the Gulf of Siam, Thailand, the master of a tanker carrying 100,000 litres of fuel oil, to supply fishing vessels at sea, was ordered by a pirate, who used to be a crewmember to come alongside his vessel. Once alongside the pirate hijacked the tanker. Two days later the pirates shot and killed the master. Three other crew members jumped overboard. A passing fishing boat later picked them up and contacted the Thai navy and police. According to the IMB, the police dispatched two marine police boats and a navy aircraft to locate / detain the vessel. The police caught the pirate who tried to escape, in a fishing boat. The police located the tanker with the remaining three-crew members and took it to the marine base for investigation.

The fishermen were victims of piracy near the Spratly Islands, South China Sea last Saturday. Armed pirates boarded a fishing vessel and robbed it of its catch while it was taking shelter due to engine trouble. The master informed his family; about the robbery and that, another vessel was approaching it. All contact with the fishing vessel was lost since the master’s last call. The IMB says that the fate of vessel and crew members is unknown.

Among other incidents reported was an attempt to board a tanker over the stern while it was underway in the Singapore Strait. Fortunately the duty officer spotted the pirates who gave up the attempted boarding and fled in a speedboat.