Nine Norwegian Flagged ship crew member abducted off the West African coast

Nine crew members of a Norwegian-flagged vessel have been kidnapped by Pirates off the coast of Benin.

According to authorities, this is the latest in a string of abductions in the Gulf of Guinea. The dry bulker MV Bonita, owned by Norwegian shipping firm JJ Ugland, was boarded by the attackers while at anchor 14km (nine miles) from the entrance of Port of Cotonou.

The ship was carrying a cargo of gypsum, a mineral commonly used as fertiliser, which was destined for Benin, according to the company, which stated that its vessel was boarded by pirates in the early hours of Saturday.

According to port officials, the incident happened in the early hours of Sunday, they however described it as an “act of piracy”.  Citing safety reasons, the Norwegian ship owner did not reveal the crew’s nationalities or how many had avoided capture.

“The Ugland Emergency Response Team is handling the situation as per contingency plans, and they are in contact with relevant authorities. The families of the crew members have been contacted and will be kept informed by Ugland,” the company said in the statement.

The Cotonou port authority said the ship’s captain was among those abducted, adding that other crew members who are safe are being interviewed as part of an ongoing investigation.

Shipping companies have reported several abductions in the region in recent months, including eight crew members taken from a German-owned vessel off Cameroon in August and ten Turkish sailors off the coast of Nigeria in July.

While piracy has decreased worldwide, West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea is a high-risk area for abductions and armed robbery, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), a unit of the International Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement last month. “The region accounts for 86% [percent] of crew taken hostage and nearly 82% [percent] of crew kidnappings globally,” the IMB said.

Pirates sometimes divert ships for several days, long enough to plunder the cargo and demand huge ransoms before freeing the crew members.