MT Kerala: Navy hands over suspects, vessel to Interpol

Commander of the Nigerian Navy Ship, NNS Delta, Capt. Musa Gemu, yesterday handed over a ship, MT Gare, with three suspected pirates allegedly involved in the hijacking of a ship off the coast of Angola in January, to the Interpol.

Gemu, while handing over the suspects to the team leader, Mr Soji Idowu, said they were apprehended in March 2014.

He explained that the suspects allegedly used MT Gareto hijack another vessel, MT Kerala, off the coast of Angola on Jan. 18.

He said they used the hijacked MT Kerala to siphon over 75,000 metric tons of Automated Gasoline Oil off the coast of Angola.

The commander said that the cargo was hijacked 200 nautical miles off the Angola coast with over $10 million worth of product on board.

“Sometime in March, MT Gare was used to hijack MT Kerala at 200 nautical miles off the coast of Angola while carrying products worth $10m.

“This ship was reported to have been involved in the operation and we saw it in Nigeria territorial water,” he said.



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