Some seven armed individuals have attacked a Ghanaian-registered fishing vessel, MENGXIN 1, in Ghanaian waters.
The incident occurred on the evening of Thursday, March 27, 2025.
A statement issued by the Director General of Public Relations of the Ghana Armed Forces, Brigadier General Aggrey-Quashie, indicated that following the attack the Ghana Navy has commenced with investigation.
The statement added that their preliminary reports indicate that at approximately 17:53 hours, the seven suspected armed individuals boarded the ship and fired warning shots, prompting several crew members to seek cover in a safe area.
“The pirates remained on board for about three hours, assembling everyone on deck and confiscating their mobile phones. After their departure, the crew emerged from hiding to discover that the Captain, Chief Mate, and Chief Engineer, all Chinese nationals, were missing and suspected of being kidnapped by the attackers” part of the statement read.
It added that the crew had to sail closer to land before reporting the incident due to the lack of mobile network coverage at sea. Fortunately, the rest of the crew is safe, and the ship has safely docked at Tema Fishing Harbour.
” Initial interrogations conducted by the Marine Police and the Eastern Naval Command’s Naval Intelligence personnel have confirmed the incident and the suspected abduction.
The information has been shared with neighboring countries through the ECOWAS Multinational Maritime Coordination Centre (MMCC) Zone F in Accra, under the Yaounde Architecture for maritime security, to alert them to be on the lookout for the kidnappers” the statement indicated.
According to Brig. Gen. Aggrey-Quashie efforts are underway by intelligence agencies to locate and rescue the missing crew members.
By Prince Fiifi Yorke
