The warning came after the latest hijacking on 4 July when pirates boarded the tanker Moresby 9 in the South China Sea and took the crew hostage before stealing part of its 2,200 tonne cargo of MGO. Although ReCAAP reported that the owner had managed to re-establish contact with the vessel earlier this week its whereabouts remained a mystery.
According to Dryad so far this year there have been 12 reported cases of vessels being boarded underway and a further 19 reports of robberies, attempted robberies or suspicious approaches in the anchorages to the east of the Singapore Strait. “The Ai Maru became the fifth product tanker to be hijacked since April 2014 when it was attacked at the end of last month,” it said.
Ian Millen coo of Dryad warned: “Our team of analysts have assessed that at least one gang is operating to the east of Singapore, hijacking small product tankers and stealing fuel cargoes. These criminals have knowledge in the workings of ships’ equipment and procedures for carrying out STS transfers. Without more proactive efforts by local maritime forces to counter this crime, we predict further incidents of this type in the region.”
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