A Corentyne fisherman has suffered losses in excess of $5M after his boat sank when armed pirates crashed into it, robbing him and his crew around 8 pm on Saturday.
Up to yesterday afternoon, owner of the boat, ‘Dereck’ of No 69 Village and a team ventured out in search of the vessel which had a 48-hp Yamaha outboard engine attached to it.
The pirates who were masked and carried a “small gun” and cutlasses severely “broadsided” Dereck, who was also the captain at the time, and his crew. The men had to be treated at the Skeldon Hospital.
He was robbed of one and half drums of gasoline, 15 large snappers and a quantity of other fish and fish glue. The matter was reported at the Springlands Police Station.
Reports are that the pirates struck the boat and broke it, causing it to “take in water” as the men were pulling in their seine. They proceeded to terrorize and rob them and then escaped as the boat was submerged.
The fishers discarded the ice from the wooden ice box and sought refuge in it. They drifted until around midday on Sunday when they were rescued by another fishing boat from the No 66 Fish Port Complex.
They left for sea on Friday and were expected to return after a few days. Chairman of the No 66 Fish Port Complex, Pravinchandra Deodat is appealing to persons with information regarding the attack to come forward and assist.
He told Stabroek News that at the moment the price for fish is very high and that it appears as though the pirates would receive information about “where the fish would run and attack whichever boat has light.”
