Pirates who abducted eight sailors, including three Russian nationals, off the coast of Cameroon have not yet contacted anyone to voice their demands, a source in the seafarers' employing company told Sputnik on Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th August, 2019) Pirates who abducted eight sailors, including three Russian nationals, off the coast of Cameroon have not yet contacted anyone to voice their demands, a source in the seafarers' employing company told Sputnik on Monday.On Thursday, multipurpose cargo vessel MarMalaita, sailing under the flag of Antigua and Barbuda, was attacked by pirates near Cameroon's Douala port. The Russian Foreign Ministry has said that the pirates kidnapped eight out of 12 crew members, including three Russian nationals. The other abductees are German nationals, according to a Sputnik source. The vessel itself was not seized and is still anchored in the port. The four remaining crew members on board have conveyed a message received from the pirates, saying that they would soon get in touch.
"Not yet," the source said, when asked whether there had been any contact with the abductors.
He noted that the whereabouts of those kidnapped were still unknown, suggesting that they might be still in Cameroon or Nigeria.
The source added that mediators from a London company who would be in charge of the ransom process had already arrived in Cameroon.
The vessel belongs to German company MC-Schiffahrt, which has said that it is "doing utmost to deal with the case."
