20 years in the shade in the Seychelles for ten pirates of the seas
Ten Somali pirates were sentenced by a Seychelles court on Monday to 20 years in prison after a trial that lasted 18 days.
They had participated in the attack and then the capture of a Seychellois fishing vessel, the F.V. Faith, 41 miles north of Silhouette Island. 7 Seychellois fishermen had been detained for four days, and required to carry out the orders of the pirates, in particular to set course for the north, under penalty of being killed if they did not cooperate. The boat was freed during the assault by the Topaz, the Seychelles Coast Guard vessel. In the action, a pirate had been mortally wounded (he died shortly afterwards) and another had to be amputated after a violent wound to the left arm.
EUNAVFOR plane provides compelling evidence
The suspects tried to plead their innocence. But the judge rejected it, believing that he had enough material and eye evidence. In addition to the testimonies of the sailors, an AK47 magazine was found on board (the pirates threw the rest of the weapons overboard). Moreover, “excellent quality” photographs taken on November 19 and 20 by an EUNAVFOR plane convinced the judge (Nb: the French Awacs and the Luxembourg Merlin III had been engaged during this operation).
