An estimated 2.5m litres of marine gas oil (MGO) was siphoned from the Moresby 9 (built 1977) in the 4 July incident.
Accounts have also emerged of the level of violence used by the robbers in the attack with reports of weapons being discharged multiple times.
Latest details about the incident come from the Singapore-based Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) Information Sharing Centre.
The attackers used a small fishing vessel to come alongside the Moresby 9 at about 20:15 local time on 4 July in position 03° 45.93’N, 105° 10.24’E about 46nm northwest of Pulau Anambas.
“The crew reportedly heard a gunshot and suddenly nine robbers armed with machetes and three pistols were sighted on the deck of the Moresby 9,” ReCAAP said.
“The perpetrators gathered the crew at the starboard bridge wing and then tied and locked them in the engine room.”
About 90 minutes later the ship reportedly anchored in position 03° 35.81’N, 105° 12.53’E and a 3,000-gt unnamed orange tanker came alongside.
The robbers are said to have then forced the chief engineer and bosun to restart the ship’s engine and pump; and open the cargo valves.
Both were then tied up and locked in the engine control room with the other cargo, while the siphoning process was carried out.
Some of the crew later managed to escape from the engine control room through the funnel and untied the remainder of the crew.
However, there was no sign of the pirates on deck or any vessel alongside. The robbers did however steal the ship’s navigation and communication equipment, the crew’s belongings and damaged the anchor windlass and steering systems.
