CHON BURI, June 2 — The Thai Royal Navy reported that the oil tanker reported missing on May 27 has been found.
The Navy said the vessel was hijacked by pirates who had destroyed all communications equipment on board the ship, but that the crew was unharmed.
Royal Thai Navy secretary-general and spokesman Rear Admiral Karn Dee-ubol said that yesterday the Thai International Tanker Company reported to the Navy that one of its oil tankers, MT Orapin 4, was founded in Chon Buri province.
MT Orapin 4 had lost contact with the company since departing from Singapore for Indonesia on May 27.
He said that the preliminary findings showed that the tanker was hijacked by a group of armed pirates, who destroyed all the vessel’s communications equipment once they took over the ship.
The pirates removed all the cargo on board, but left enough fuel for the vessel to return to shore.
Admiral Karn Dee-Ubol all crew on board were safe and that the company is investigating the incident further.
The Thai diesel oil tanker, MT Orapin 4, carrying 14 crew members, had lost contact with its owners since May 27, after leaving Singapore for Pontianak on Kalimantan, the Indonesian portion of Borneo Island.
