Six persons — all believed to be Guyanese — are now in police custody and are being interrogated in connection with the pirate attack on a 20-member crew, mostly Guyanese, in four boats off the coast of Suriname on Saturday last.
One of the men was reportedly nabbed by fishermen on Thursday morning and handed over to the Police, while the five others were apprehended later in the day.
INews was told by some fisher folks on the Corentyne in Berbice, Region Six, that last weekend’s attack was a vendetta.
Several persons operating out of the Number 66 Fishermen’s Co-op related to this online publication that the Guyanese fishermen operating in Suriname have a rift among themselves.
This is as a result of the availability and accessibility to licences to operate in the waters of the Dutch-speaking nation.
The most recent pirate attack occurred on Wednesday evening off the Coast of Matapica in the Surinamese waters.
Secretary of the Visserscollectief (a fishermen’s association), Mark Lall, confirmed that the captain of the fishing vessel was killed while his crew members could not be accounted for.
This attack comes as Dutch authorities continue the search for the missing fishermen from last weekend’s horrific bout.
Of the 16 fishermen who were initially reported missing, four bodies were found but only two have since been recovered.
It was explained that the rescuers had to abandon the operation to retrieve the two other bodies because of the thick mud.
However, it was reported that they returned to the area the following day, but there has since been no further update.
Moreover, one of the missing men managed to survive five days after the incident while being injured.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Justice and Police in Suriname, the fifth survivor of last weekend’s pirate attack near the Wia Wia Bank in the Atlantic Ocean was spotted on Thursday morning at Braamspunt by a passing fishing boat.
The man has been identified as Cherwin Lovell, a Guyanese national.
“The victim indicated that he had walked through the marsh for five days in search of help, and arrived at Braamspunt this morning [Thursday] at 10.00 am. The man, who (has) injuries to his body, was caught by fishermen in the area,” the Ministry said.
The statement went on to detail that the fishermen assisted the piracy victim and informed the Maritime Police, who later picked up the injured. He was transferred to Leonsberg, from where he was transported to the Academic Hospital for medical treatment.
The Secretary of the Visserscollectief had said on Thursday that many details surrounding the man’s survival were unknown at the time.
INews understands that apart from a possible broken arm and a few lacerations about his body, the man is recuperating well.
Among those Guyanese who are missing from last weekend’s incident are: Ramesh Sanchara; Ganesh Persaud, Vickey Persaud, Glenroy Jones, Bharat Heralall, Ralph Anthony, Randy Burnette and Tiaknauth Mohabir.
Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo met with some of the relatives of the missing fishermen in Corentyne on Thursday.
