Legal Corner

  • Prosecuting Suspected Pirates

    The following notes to assist readers in understanding the difficulties faced by EU NAVFOR in the fight against piracy: Once suspected pirates are detained, and as EU NAVFOR has no […]

  • Pirates Freed

    EUNAVFOR has released 18 suspected pirates that had been detained by the Finnish warship “FNS POHJANMAA” since the 6 April. They were released after requests to a number of states, […]

  • Pirate Negotiator Arrested

    US officials have seized an individual believed to be a Somali pirate who was the chief negotiator in a yacht hijacking last February in which four American citizens were killed. The […]

  • Big Deal

    U.S. officials say they have captured their first pirate leader, an English-speaking Somali man accused of being the chief negotiator during the pirate attack on the yacht “Quest” in the […]

  • Long Stretch

    A U.S. court has sentenced a Somali man to 25 years in prison for a pirate attack on a merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden. A federal judge in […]

  • Gun Scare

    South African authorities are increasingly concerned about weapons left on board merchant ships while in the country’s ports. Owners or managers must apply to the South African Police Service (SAPS) […]

  • Pirates Transferred to Seychelles

    11 suspected pirates detained by the EUNAVFOR Spanish warship, ESPS CANARIAS on 28 March 2011 were today transferred to Seychellois legal authorities for possible prosecution. The suspected pirates were detained by […]

  • Fast Growing Business

    The world’s third largest insurance broker, Willis Group Holdings plc, considers piracy coverage as among its “fastest-growing” businesses. Even amid an ever increasing demand for protection against kidnappings and ransom, […]

  • Case Delay

    In the US, Federal prosecutors want to push back the trial date for 14 suspected pirates by nearly a year. Thirteen Somalis and a man from Yemen have pleaded not […]

  • Life Sentence

    Five Somali men convicted of attacking a US Navy ship they mistook for a merchant vessel have been sentenced to life in prison. The men were found guilty in November […]