Bangladeshi authorities have scored a rare victory in the battle against maritime piracy in the country’s waters.
The country’s coast guard has captured three men after they targeted the Bergshav-managed chemical tanker 13,578-dwt Bertina (built 2006).
The incident took place in the latter part of April, but news of the incident has gone largely unreported by the media.
Details have only just emerged in the latest report by the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against ships in Asia (ReCAAP).
Three perpetrators armed with iron rod are reported to have boarded the Bahamas-flagged ship from a small boat at Chittagong anchorage.
They are said to have injured the watch keeper and then stole 10 drums of paint, containing a total of 140 litres, and then escaped, according to ReCAAP.
“The master raised the alarm, mustered the crew and reported the incident to the Chittagong Port Control and Bangladesh Coast Guard (BCG),” it added.
“The BCG dispatched a patrol boat to the location, recovered the stolen items and arrested the perpetrators. The stolen items were returned to the victim ship and the perpetrators handed over to the local police.”
