Maritime safety consultancy Dryad Global announced that while en route to Lagos, the Togo-flagged bunkering vessel Stelios K was boarded and hijacked. The operator announced the loss of communication with the vessel, which resulted in the authorities trying to ascertain the location of the vessel.

The Gulf of Guinea Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade later obtained confirmation that the suspects were still on board while local authorities were notified and discussions on securing the vessel and crew are continuing.

“The lack of immediate kidnap would indicate that the perpetrators potentially sought options for either offloading or selling refined product that may be onboard,” the company announced.

The incident follows two accidents in the Gulf over the past seven days, one with five crew kidnapped on board the Am Delta general cargo vessel and the other with 14 crew abducted from the Chinese Zhen Hua 7 heavy lift vessel.

Maritime Business World