Rio Dulce, Guatemala to Utila, Honduras: Yacht boarded by armed pirates and ransacked – April 2017
Published 8 years ago, updated 5 years ago
As reported by the CSSN. [BROKEN LINK]
DATE: 2017-04-13 08:00
Country Name: Honduras
Location Detail: Puerto Cortes Naval Base Yard
EVENT: Piracy
HAND: 1
Stolen Items: VHF, SSB. EPIRB, flares, outboard engine, binoculars, smartphones, tools, security items, clothing, suitcases, toiletries, and many more small items
SECURED: Not Locked
DETAILS:
A sailing vessel departed the Rio Dulce, Guatemala intending to visit Utila, Honduras. They were motor sailing in light winds and at 8:00 AM, they were about 10 miles off the coast and were boarded by pirates. 4 men boarded (2 armed with handguns) and 1 remained in the open fishing boat.
The pirates were very aggressive, and fired their guns several times very close to the heads of the crew to ensure compliance. The crew spoke French and pretended not to “understand” while the boat was ransacked for about 1 hour.
The pirates took everything they could, while taking no precautions to conceal their identities. Once satisfied with their haul they departed in the direction of the Honduran coast.
There were no injuries to the crew. The yacht was able to make radio contact with the Puerto Cortes naval base and routed there to make reports to the Coast Guard, Police and Port Captain.
Related to the following Cruising Resources: Piracy & Security
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