Seaman found dead after pirate attack

MANILA, Philippines -    A Filipino seafarer was found dead aboard a Marshall Island-flagged ship four days after it was attacked by pirates at the coast of Benin, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday.

The vessel’s local manning agency did not mention what caused Christopher Cortez Ceprado’s death on May 11. The chemical tanker M/T Sea King was boarded by heavily armed pirates on May 7 at the anchorage of the port of Cotonou in Benin. The vessel is manned by a crew of 17 Filipinos.

The armed pirates ransacked the vessel and went through the crew’s personal effects. No other crew member was reported injured.

Ceprado’s body was brought for autopsy to the mortuary in Cotonou, where the Sea King is berthed while authorities investigate the incident.

The DFA is coordinating with the local manning agency for the repatriation of his remains and the provision of benefits to his relatives.