17 October 2013
Belgium
A suspected Somali pirate has been arrested at Brussels airport after suspicions that he was responsible for the kidnapping of the Spanish tuna purse seiner, Alakrana, in 2009. Mohamed Abdi Hassan is alleged to have been behind the holding of 36 crew members for 47 days off the coast of Somalia.
Sources approached by the National Court explained that they believed Hassan was the brain and main financer of the hijacking of the vessel which belonged to the Basque region of Spain. The courts will decide whether Hassan will be extradited to Spain to face justice for the punishment.
Hassan is accused of being the head of piracy in central Somalia and the main culprit behind dozens of vessel kidnappings. Belgium authorities have accused him of also being responsible for the freighter Pompei that took place in 2009.
According to legal sources, the suspect decided to leave the piracy business around a year ago due to lack of profitability, and had even declared an intention to become a politician. Others have argued that he has involvement in drug trafficking.
Shortly after the kidnapping of Alakrana in 2009, two other Somali pirates were arrested surrounding the incident and sentenced to 439 year in jail each. There are currently a total of 14 suspected Somali pirates of various attacks jailed in Spain.
