And Modern Day Piracy: West Africa As Hotspot

As a bookend to "Piracy at the Old Bailey: A Selection of Cases".
 From the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, August 12:

Corruption and Poverty Made West Africa Hot Spot for Piracy 
It was 7:40 a.m. when the chief officer of the MV Duke called Captain Ripusad Prasad in his quarters to say that a boat was following them.

That Sunday, December 15, 2019, the MV Duke was traversing the Gulf of Guinea on its way from Luanda, Angola to Lomé, Togo, where it was to anchor in the afternoon. Captain Prasad had planned to be just in time to catch a flight home to India so he could see his son blow out the candles on his birthday cake.

“I was on the bridge within a few seconds and looking out we could see heads and automatic weapons popping out,” the Captain recalls. “It was a fast boat, about 30 knots, while we were only doing about 10 knots.”

The MV Duke, a chemical tanker, was going at its maximum speed.

“There was no way we could outrun them,” Prasad said.

The pirates caught up with them within minutes, shouting for the boat to slow down. Prasad had no choice but to retreat with his crew into the ship’s fortified citadel room.

“We were terrified, hell had broken loose and we were shit scared, I had never seen so many weapons in my life,” he said. “I tried to calm down my crew, I told them to pray and not make any funny moves.”

The crew did a headcount and found that one man was missing. Prasad had to think fast. If the pirates had captured that missing crew member, there was only one way to save his life.

He walked out with his hands in the air.

NEW HOTSPOT

The plundering and hijacking of ships in the high seas is as old as the maritime trade, and has often been romanticized. But pirates of the 21st century are a far cry from the Walt Disney creations of a handsome Jack Sparrow and the Black Pearl’s odyssey through the Caribbean.

Today’s pirates are known as Kalashnikov-toting youth speeding in little boats toward giant ships off the coast of Somalia.

In the last few years, however, the coast of West Africa, and specifically The Gulf of Guinea, has replaced the Horn of Africa as the most dangerous region in the world when it comes to maritime piracy.

In 2019, the West African coast saw nearly 100 attacks, according to a report by Stable Seas, a program of the One Earth Future foundation researches illicit maritime activities such as piracy, armed robbery, human trafficking and smuggling.

In the first quarter of 2020, before the onset of the global coronavirus pandemic, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has recorded a nearly 20 percent increase in piracy incidents around the world compared to the same period last year.

The bureau also noted that not a single incident occurred off the coast in Somalia during this year’s first quarter.

Other regions known for piracy, such as the Singapore Strait, have also seen decreases. The Gulf of Guinea, on the other hand, had more than 50 attacks against vessels between January and June, according to the IMB’s Piracy Reporting Centre.

The first week of May was the worst period. In less than 48 hours, three attacks led to 16 kidnapped men who were likely going through an ordeal very similar to that faced by Captain Prasad and his crew.

NEW TARGET

When the pirates embarked the MV Duke, they went around interrogating the crew to make sure there were no armed guards on board. They looted the cabins for cash and personal belongings but didn’t check the cargo.

They were after the human capital....

....MUCH MORE

Three of this year's posts:
"Pirates Kidnap Seven Russian Sailors in Gulf of Guinea"
That may be an error on the part on the pirates.*

"Asian Piracy Incidents Double in H1 2020"

I've said it before but it still amazes me that piracy can be a viable career option in the year 2020.
They pose such a danger to the crews that you'd think they would be eliminated on sight, wherever they are found, open ocean, island hidey-hole across from Singapore, Bight of Benin, dive bar in Thailand, wherever.

"Why Pirates Are Giving Up On Oil"

I was always under the impression that by taking up piracy those who ply that vocation self-identified (probably not a term they use) as outlaws, literally outside-the-law and could be shot on sight by any navy in the world. The lady attorneys tell me this is not always the case.
More after the jump....

And previously on "human capital":

The first rule of kidnapping insurance is DON"T TELL ANYONE YOU HAVE KIDNAPPING INSURANCE!
News You Can Use: "The Economics of Kidnap Insurance"
"Kidnapped by Pirates at Sea? Here's How Economics Can Save You"
Insurance—"The business of kidnapping: inside the secret world of hostage negotiation"