Eight armed robbery incidents on ships in Manila Anchorage reported in first eight months of 2021

The Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) has recorded a total of eight incidents of armed robbery against ships in the Manila Anchorage area in the Philippines from January to August 2021.

The location of all the eight incidents is at South Harbor Anchorage Area of Manila. Particularly, in the latest three incidents in July and August, the perpetrators were armed with gun or a knife and demonstrated violence to the crew.

In the incident on July 17, the perpetrator pointed an improvised (hand-made) gun at a duty crew, took his radio, and tied him to the railing of the ship.

In the incident on August 4, the perpetrator tried to stab a duty crew with a knife. The crew managed to avoid the stabbing, but was tied up by two other perpetrators with a rope on the forecastle deck.

In the incident on August 13, the perpetrator pointed a gun at a duty crew, ordered him to open the storage room, and tied up his hands with a rope at the forward centre bollard. In the same incident, another perpetrator threatened a crew with a knife.

In all three incidents, ship stores were stolen, with significant quantity of stores stolen in the two cases of August.

The ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre (ISC) said it is concerned with the continued occurrence of incidents and the increased level of violence at the South Harbour Anchorage Area of Manila. Ship masters and crew are therefore strongly advised to exercise vigilance, maintain constant look-out for suspicious boats, and report all incidents immediately to the local authorities.

The ReCAAP ISC said it is also very important for the crew not to engage in a confrontation with the perpetrators.