Korean Captain's Tuna Fishing Vessel Hijacked by Pirates off the Coast of Ghana

The scene of the Korean fishing vessel with a Korean captain hijacked off the coast of Ghana (red circle at the top left) [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Dryad Global, a maritime safety risk management company, reported on the 20th (local time) that a fishing vessel with a Korean captain was hijacked by pirates off the coast of Ghana in West Africa.

According to Dryad Global, the Ghana-flagged tuna fishing vessel Atlantic Princess was hijacked around 6:30 PM (UTC) on the 19th off Tema, a coastal city east of Accra, the capital of Ghana. A total of five crew members were kidnapped, including the Korean captain, three Chinese nationals, and one Russian national.

Dryad Global stated, "A high-speed boat carrying eight pirates approached, fired shots, and five armed assailants boarded the fishing vessel," adding, "Afterward, the ship moved further south, and the pirates kidnapped the five crew members and left the vessel."

The initial hijacking location was about 65 nautical miles (approximately 120 km) south of Tema, Ghana’s fishing forward base. The pirates, who took control of the ship, reportedly sailed about 100 more nautical miles south before leaving the vessel with the crew members.

According to diplomatic sources, the area where the hijacked vessel was operating was not designated by Korean authorities as a 'high-risk pirate zone' where fishing was advised to be suspended. A source said, "Pirates are becoming increasingly bold, appearing even near the coast, but Ghana has only about ten naval warships, and only four or five are properly operational," noting that enforcement equipment is very inadequate.

The vessel involved in the incident is Ghana-flagged, but half of its shares are owned by Chinese nationals, and the Korean captain was employed by this company.

In the Gulf of Guinea off West Africa, where Ghana is located, there were three cases of Korean crew members being kidnapped by Nigerian pirates last year (early May, late June, late August). All were tuna fishing vessels, with two flagged in Ghana and one in Gabon. The kidnapped Koreans were eventually released, but some were held for as long as 50 days.

Russia’s Sputnik News also reported, citing the Russian ambassador, that pirates kidnapped Russian nationals off the coast of Ghana. The embassy added that diplomats are in contact with the Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Russian Ambassador Dmitry Suslov later said, "We are in contact with a Ghanaian fishing company called Pioneer Food Company," and since the captain of the vessel involved is Korean, he plans to meet with the Korean ambassador to Ghana (Im Jeong-taek).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.