Russian Navy hands over ten pirates to Yemen

19.02.2009
The Russian Navy has handed over to Yemeni authorities the pirates captured a few days ago by the crew of the cruiser Pyotr Veliky (Peter The Great) off the Somali coast.

Ten pirates were transferred from the Pyotr Veliky to the antisubmarine ship Admiral Vinogradov and later handed over to Yemeni coast guards and police at a designated spot, said Captain First Class Igor Dygalo, an aide to the commander of the Russian Navy.

Yemeni authorities will decide what to do with the criminals.

A Ka-27 helicopter based on the heavy missile cruiser Pyotr Veliky spotted two small boats loaded with pirates southwest of the island of Sokotra (Yemen). The boats were attempting to intercept a fishing boat flying the Iranian flag. After spotting the helicopters, the pirates attempted eluding maneuvers, but the crew of the Ka-27 kept tracking the boats until the Pyotr Veliky caught up with them. The pirates were arrested and taken into custody. They were Somali citizens. A weapon arsenal was found on them, including a G-3 rifle, three AK-47s, two AKMS machine guns, two RPGs, two antipersonnel grenades, GPS receivers, a ladder, and ropes. Five hundred grams of narcotics were also found on the criminals, a huge stack of Somali shillings, a sack of sugar, and a sack of rice. The pirates were all under the influence of controlled substances.

Translation: RusNavy.com