Vietnamese tanker crew freed by pirates

[terranMarine]

A Vietnamese oil tanker which went missing last week was seized by pirates who stole some of its cargo before releasing its crew, say officials.

The MT Sunrise 689, heading to Vietnam's Quang Tri port, disappeared shortly after leaving Singapore.

The crew said about a dozen men armed with guns and knives had boarded the ship and beaten them.

They siphoned off the oil before leaving the ship and freeing the crew on Thursday morning.

The ship, which has been carrying for more 5,000 tonnes of oil, is now making its way to Vietnam.

"The pirates broke the communication system, robbed the oil and goods on board," Nguyen Nhat, director of Vietnam's Maritime Department, told AFP news agency.

He said the pirates had taken about a third of the cargo.

The ship's deputy captain Pham Van Hoang said he believed the pirates were Indonesian.

"They put knives on our throats and threatened to kill us if we resist," he told the Associated Press by phone from the ship. One crew member broke his leg as he tried to run away, he said.

The Mt Sunrise 689 is the 12th tanker to be hijacked in South East Asia since April this year.

The International Maritime Bureau says there has been a steady rise in piracy across southeast Asia, particularly in the busy Malacca Strait between Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, despite regional efforts to tackle the problem.

Globally, piracy is estimated to cost the shipping industry as a much as $8bn (£5bn) a year.

 

[Viet]

where is our chinese brother?
they hunt for pirates before the coast of africa, in the gulf of aden or elsewhere, but failed to protect their small brother in the immerdiate neighborhood

that is the ship. the good thing is the crew is alive.

 

[Nike]

well those area is very well known for Lanun nest, despite Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia regular patrol there is still some casualties of hijacking and piracy

 

[Viet]

well those area is very well known for Lanun nest, despite Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia regular patrol there is still some casualties of hijacking and piracy

if the pirates are indonesians as the captain assumed, I wonder where are their most likely hideouts?

 

[Nike]

if the pirates are indonesians as the captain assumed, I wonder where are their most likely hideouts?

nobody knows, they are professional pirates, not your average Somalian Pirates. Even some of them hold Singapore resident permit, some living in coastal cities in Malaysia peninsular or Riau Islands, some of them ex armed forces from any country. Some weeks ago our Naval forces capturing some ex Thailand Police Naval officer cooperate with Vietnamese crew working as Pirates in Malacca strait and they holds citizen cards of Malaysia (in which surely a forgery cases).

 

[Viet]

nobody knows, they are professional pirates, not your average Somalian Pirates. Even some of them hold Singapore resident permit, some living in coastal cities in Malaysia peninsular or Riau Islands, some of them ex armed forces from any country. Some weeks ago our Naval forces capturing some ex Thailand Police Naval officer cooperate with Vietnamese crew working as Pirates in Malacca strait and they holds citizen cards of Malaysia (in which surely a forgery cases).

the vietnamese captain reported the pirates armed with guns and knives used a highspeed vessel and two fishing boats to hijack the tanker. no, I would say these pirates are amateurs. they only emptied a third of oil cargo onboard.

somalian pirates would capture the tanker, crew and demand ransom in millions of dollar before release. they usually have machine guns. aka more dangerous.

 

[Nike]

the vietnamese captain reported the pirates armed with guns and knives used a highspeed vessel and two fishing boats to hijack the tanker. no, I would say these pirates are amateurs. they only emptied a third of oil cargo onboard.

somalian pirates would capture the tanker, crew and demand ransom in millions of dollar before release. they usually have machine guns. aka more dangerous.

Just to the point, What make me say they are an professional?

1. They not dare to kill or capturing the vessels at long time. It is only bring the attention from Naval Patrol vessels nearby in which just bring harm for them. Any murdering cases in Malacca strait will bring uproar and intensive search and rescue mission from the three countries. And it will be a different cases with some robbery and pickpocketing.

2. Emptied a third of oil cargo still needs an intensive and specific planning with extensive logistic support. Namely they need another vessels to hold the cargo at sea, and those vessels must be big and large enough to carry the cargo. Those "thief" vessel surely need crews to operate them, and they are not your Habib from Somalian coast, as they can operating and manning their vessels in such busy straits and navigating them accordingly in such specific time with the time of their friend when "hijacking" the vessel victims.

3. They need a financier who trusted enough to bought all of their "goods", and they must be someone/groups with financial capacity. To get a contact with a groups like them is not something some Habib and Mustafa from Somalia can do.

4. They got a precise information about their intended victims, (starting with the cargoes they brought, the number of the crews, their routes, and even the average speed of the vessels), and they too got a specific information about the conditions of Naval Patrol nearby, and coordinated the precise to attack with the absence of the Patrol. To getting such an information is not an easy feats, and cheap stuff.

5. Indonesian Navy, Singapore Navy and Malaysia Navy, several times capturing those pirates at sea, and in some occasion we found them bring heavy weapons to defend themselves and their vessels such as RPG, Heavy machine gun, or even anti-material sniper rifles and AT-4 ATGM

 

[NiceGuy]

All ASEAN nations must form an ASEAN coast guard force to protect our water from Indonesia to Phillipine.

 

[Nike]

Joint Patrol Forces is a requisite

 

[Cossack25A1]

Our navy is not fully prepared for such patrols...for now.

Once we get two more frigates or more corvettes, then we are at least ready.

 

[NiceGuy]

• BBC News - Pirates raid oil tanker in Malacca Straits
  BBC News - Pirates raid oil tanker in Malacca Straits
  
  23-04-2014 - Armed pirates raid an oil tanker sailing in the Malacca Straits, stealing diesel and abducting three crew members, officials in Malaysia say.

Just Google , and u can see the pirate attack many ships , oil tankers passing through Malacca strait. Its time to stand up, form a Joint Patrol Forces against those bastards.

 

[Nike]

Just Google , and u can see the pirate attack many ships , oil tankers passing through Malacca strait. Its time to stand up, form a Joint Patrol Forces against those bastards.

we had, and still do that, even Indonesian side has patrolling our side with more than 200 patrol boats and dozens warship, but sometimes they can clever us. For them is just like pick pocketing the crowds in Heavy metal concert.