15 seafarers have been kidnapped from a Liberian-flagged product tanker; Curacao Trader while it was 244 nautical miles south Cotonou, Benin Republic, and south-southwest of Nigeria.
This incident happened few days after the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) described the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) off West Africa as being the most dangerous for commercial shipping.
According to Dryad Global, the incident was the furthest offshore act of piracy yet recorded in the GoG area.
Despite the use of speedboats, based on the location Dryad speculates that the perpetrators are being supported by a larger mother vessel, allowing them to sustain deep offshore operations beyond state counter-piracy efforts.
Dryad reported that the 11,321 DWT Liberian-flagged product tanker Curacao Trader was boarded, and apparently, 15 Russian and Ukrainian seafarers have been kidnapped.
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According to their analysis of the situation, the vessel departed Lome in Togo sailing south when it was approached by eight armed individuals who boarded the product tanker.
Dryad further reported that the vessel’s speed dropped to 3 knots at the time of the attack. The vessel was later reported drifting with its status on AIS showing as “Not under Command.” It was later reported to be proceeding at 10 knots.
This is the third incident that was reported this month in the Gulf of Guinea with five crew members kidnapped at the beginning of July from the general cargo vessel Kota Budi. Nine were also kidnapped from the FPSO Sendje Berge in the oil fields of Nigeria.
The IMB’s Piracy Reporting Centre recorded 98 incidents of piracy and armed robbery in the first half of 2020, saying that the Gulf of Guinea accounted for over 90 percent of the maritime kidnappings worldwide.
Dryad reports that this latest incident brings to 93 the total number of crew kidnappings in the Gulf of Guinea. The number of people kidnapped in maritime incidents is currently tracking at a 47 percent increase compared to 2019.
