A Nigerian man currently standing trial in Copenhagen for charges relating to piracy has claimed that the reason he ended up with a crew that allegedly tried to board a Danish ship was because he “wanted to see the sea”.
According to a report by Danish news site DR, the man was one of a group of suspected pirates who ended up in a firefight with the Danish crew on board the Esbern Snare ship as it sailed around the Gulf of Guinea in Western Africa.
The defendant lost his left leg during the confrontation when he jumped out of the boat and hit the propeller. The injury has left him in a wheelchair. In total, five people lost their lives in the events that took place 24 November 2021, although no Danes came to harm.
The man who told the jury that he was told he could earn $7,000 if he joined the crew, but claims that he and his fellow crew did not intend to hijack a merchant ship.
When asked about why he joined the boat crew if in the past he had only worked on stealing oil on land, as he claims, he said that “I had heard others talk about how big the sea is and that it has no end. I thought I would like to experience that”.
The man has been charged with ‘endangerment’ by Danish authorities. This charge carries a significantly lighter punishment that the initial charge of attempted murder that he first faced during a constitutional hearing in January.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, do remember to come back and check out the EuroNews247 website for all your up-to-date European news stories.
