Baldo

The "Barrett" has been released after a Gulf of Guinea piracy incident lasting six days. All crew members were safe. Many parties that assisted in achieving the successful resolution of this incident. The crew was safely back in Lago and was met by senior representatives from Union Maritime and the technical managers.

The "Barrett" as been overtaken by pirates in the Bight of Benin with all of its crew. Shipowners Union Maritime confirmed the attack in their second statement since losing track of the ship's location when its AIS data stopped updating. The tanker was at anchor off Benin when it became subject of a Gulf of Guinea piracy attack on Jan 10. The safety of the crew has been its first priority throughout the search for the vessel and in attempting to bring the incident to a safe resolution. The company was actively working with all relevant parties to ensure the situation is resolved “successfully and as quickly as possible. The "Barrett" was last heard from late Jan 9 when it was at anchor off Benin. Union Maritime alerted local maritime authorities and explored all possible options and efforts as they continuously monitored the situation. The primary concern is for the 22 crew on board and ensuring their safety. The "Barrett" left an anchorage off the port of Lagos, Nigeria in the evening of Jan 5, proceeding west until it reached the vicinity of Lomé, Togo, on the morning of Jan 6. It departed the area in the afternoon of 8 January and was headed east until it abruptly turned to port, towards land in Cotonou, Benin when its AIS tracking data ceased updating.

The "Barrett" was reported missing since Jan 9 or 10, 2018, off Cotonou in the Gulf of Guinea. The latest known AIS position on Jan 9 at 02.14 a.m. was in 06 14N 002 30E. Possibly the tanker was hijacked with the purpose of cargo theft - it was partially laden - and some of the 22 crew members may have been kidnapped.