Pirates set to move kidnapped Brits

30 October 2009 10:34am

Pirates holding a British couple have tried to stay one step ahead of the authorities by moving them for a second time.

The man who claimed to speak for the Somali pirates holding Paul and Rachel Chandler said the couple will be moved from land back to sea.

Mr Chandler said the couple were being held on a container ship seized by the pirates earlier this month when he spoke to ITV shortly before 11am on Thursday.

Local fishermen then reported seeing the couple being taken to the village of Ceel Huur, near the pirate stronghold Harardhere.

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A spokesman for the pirates, who identified himself only by his first name Abdinor, said the couple will now be moved to a ship anchored off the eastern coast of Somalia.

The pirates believe it will be safer for the couple to be kept on a ship with other hostages, he said.

The man said Mr and Mrs Chandler are healthy and added that the pirates took them to rest on land at Harardhere on Thursday night.

The group is yet to make a ransom demand, he said.

During the call with ITV News Mr Chandler said the couple were being held on the Kota Wajar, a container ship which was hijacked in the Indian Ocean on October 15.

It is not known if the pirates intend to return the couple to the same ship, one of eight which have been captured in the area in recent months.

Mr Chandler, 59, and his 55-year-old wife, from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, were captured in the early hours of last Friday when armed men boarded their yacht, the Lynn Rival.

The couple, who are both retired, were sailing from the Seychelles towards Tanzania.

Commander John Harbour, spokesman for the European Naval Force Somalia (EU NAVFOR), said the pirates usually secure the vessel they have captured then contact the ship's owner to start negotiations.

Mr Chandler told ITV News the pirates "kept asking for money and took everything of value on the boat" before moving the couple onto the Kota Wajar.

Mrs Chandler's sister-in-law, Christine Collett, 52, of Ixworth, Suffolk, would not be drawn on how the family might approach any ransom demand.

She said: "We know no more than yesterday, it's just a waiting game.

"We are doing everything in the best interests for Rachel and Paul. I honestly think it's best not to talk about such things."

The couple's yacht was abandoned and the Ministry of Defence confirmed that it had been found empty.

Commander Harbour said the pirates often take trade ships but have recently seized a couple of yachts, taking the crews prisoner.

"They know lives are worth a lot of money," he added.

He warned that negotiations can take months.

© The Press Association