Pirates Steal Red Paint

Published Apr 28, 2020 8:56 PM by The Maritime Executive

The ReCaap ISC has reported that two vessels were boarded by pirates last week, with one incident involving the theft of 80 liters of red deck paint.

The Bermuda-flagged tanker Masagana was boarded on April 20 while at anchor in the Vung Tau Anchorage, Vietnam. Four men boarded via the forecastle from a wooden boat. When cited, they jumped overboard and escaped. The crew conducted a search on board the ship and discovered that the forward store was opened with either a hammer or bolt cutter. The pirates stole 80 litres of deck red paint from the forward store.

The other incident involved the Panama-flagged bulk carrier Horizon II on April 22. She was sailing approximately 2.9 nautical miles north of Pulau Nongsa, Indonesia in the eastbound lane of the TSS in the Singapore Strait en route from Singapore to Vietnam, when two men were sighted at the stern deck of the ship. One was armed with a knife. The general alarm was raised, and the crew mustered at the bridge. The master sailed the ship back to the port of Singapore and requested assistance from the authorities to conduct search. The men were not found, and nothing was stolen.

The two incidents follow four the week before. The tanker Seafrost was boarded while off Alang Anchorage, India, on April 18. She was waiting for demolition when she was boarded and some property stolen.

While sailing in the South China Sea on April 16 en route from port of Sungai Linggi, Malaysia, to Qingdao, China, the master of the VLCC Arafura discovered that padlocks to restricted spaces had been cut. A breathing apparatus air compressor unit and various spare parts were stolen. The master conducted a search of the ship but did not see the perpetrators.

While en route from Singapore to China in the eastbound lane of the Singapore Strait TSS on April 16, the master of the bulk carrier Palais saw three perpetrators at the stern of the ship. There was no confrontation between the perpetrators and the crew, but some engine spares were stolen.

On April 14, while at anchor approximately four nautical miles west of Manila International Container Terminal, one of the crew on the container ship NYK Joanna noticed an small, unlit motor boat near the starboard quarter of the ship. On investigation, the Chief Officer and two crew saw a perpetrator with a knife standing at the hawse pipe area of the ship (port side) and another running from the bosun store. They escaped through the port hawse pipe into the boat. A set of self-contained breathing apparatus, a flashlight and three sets of chain blocks were stolen. 

ReCAAP ISC reports that there were 29 incidents of armed robbery against ships in Asia during the first quarter of 2020. This was 19 more than the same time last year.