Pirates Kidnap 8 from German-Owned Cargo Ship Off Cameroon

Pirates kidnapped eight crew members from a general cargo ship off the coast of Cameroon in West Africa.

The vessel’s Hamburg, Germany-based shipowner, MC-Schiffahrt, confirmed the incident in a statement posted to its website. The company said its MV MarMalaita was attacked Thursday, August 14, between 23.00h and 24.00h local time at the Douala anchorage in Cameroon.

Pirates boarded the ship and kidnapped 8 of the vessel’s 12 crewmembers.

“We have assembled our emergency response team and are doing utmost to deal with the case, in cooperation with all relevant authorities and crew managers,” the statement said.

“Our thoughts reach out to the concerned families, and we will take all efforts to support and assist them until their seafarers safely return back home. All respective authorities have been informed accordingly and we will fully cooperate with them until the case is resolved,” the statement added.

The 142-meter MV MarMalaita is flagged in Antigua Barbuda. AIS ship tracking data shows the vessel arrived at the Douala anchorage on Wednesday.