A ransom has been paid to secure the release of ‘Faina’, the Ukrainian ship loaded with military cargo which was hijacked by Somali priates last September.

Last Thursday (February 5), speedboats carrying three dozen men brought the pirates back to shore after they had spent the night totalling their cash on board ‘Faina’.

While the pirates had initially demanded US$20 million, reports suggest that negotiations with the vessel’s owners, Waterlux, Panama, have brought the figure down to US$3.2 million. It is believed the money was parachuted onto the ship’s deck late last Wednesday (February 4).

The remaining crew of 20 were freed along with the ship, and all the crewmembers are said to be in good health. At the time of capture, there were 17 Ukrainians, three Russians and one Latvian aboard. The ship’s Russian captain, Vladimir Kolobkov, died on September 28, from a hypertension-related stroke.