- Armed assailants boarded the tanker San Ramons off the coast of eastern Venezuela,
- The Captain was shot in the face and died.
- Another crewmember was injured, with a third one jumping overboard.
Armed assailants murdered the captain of an oil tanker after boarding his ship while it was anchored off the coast of eastern Venezuela, reports Safety4sea.
Armed assailants on board
Six armed individuals boarded the San Ramon tanker early Monday morning in Pozuelos Bay and shot the captain, Colombian national Jaime Herrera Orozco, a report from the Puerto La Cruz port authority said.
A coast guard sergeant guarding the ship was also injured, the report added.
First death in Venezuela
Jose Bodas, an oil workers union leader in Puerto La Cruz, said the tanker had been waiting to enter the Jose oil terminal to load with crude.
He said it was the first time he could recall an attack of this type in eastern Venezuela, and it was the first death at the hands of “pirates” he knew of.
“This is a demonstration of the insecurity we face, which is also present in the oil fields and undoubtedly impacted production,” Bodas said in a telephone interview, adding that other members of the San Ramon’s crew were missing.
Authorities have not provided official information about the incident.
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Source: Safety4sea
