On July 2, 2024, the China Coast Guard seized the 'Da Jin Man No. 88' off the coast of Kinmen, an outlying island governed by Taiwan. The ship was boarded about 18 nautical miles outside of Taiwan's restricted waters near the Kinmen Islands. Three Coast Guard vessels converged on the ship at about 8.15 p.m., and three CGA vessels responded to the scene to intervene. The CGA crews broadcast radio messages asking the CCG to release the 'Da Jin Man No. 88' and desist, but the mainland Chinese forces did not comply. Instead, the CCG broadcast a message back, instructing the Taiwanese forces not to interfere. Meanwhile, four more China Coast Guard vessels approached the scene. In order to avoid escalation, the Taiwanese CGA broke off the chase and left the area, and it has handed the case over to Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council for followup with Chinese authorities. The 'Da Jin Man No. 88' was taken to the port of Weitou, along with its crew, consisting of three Indonesian nationals and two Taiwanese nationals. It was unclear why the 'Da Jin Man No. 88' was picked out for inspection, as it was one of dozens of vessels operating in the area. It was possible that the vessel was selected at random. Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration was calling on China to explain why it seizedthe fishing vessel, demanding to immediately release the vessel and its crew.
News
Chittagong
We are pleased to introduce"A.Z Ship Supply"as a prominent supplier for all types of Ship Material & Spares anywhere. It is a new Stair of us - which supplies Spare Items for Ship worldwide. It begins in the Marine Department after a large experience in Goods Purchasing, Well & Needed Servicing, Supplying, etc. We mainly deal with the following Marine Items: 1.Main Engine & Spares 2.Aux Engine & Spares / Repairing as per vessel's class 3.Marine Turbocharger 4.Hydraulic motor & pump 5.Deck items / Chemical Supply 6.Electrical & Electronics equipment etc. About the quality of goods - "A.Z Ship Supply" is fully guaranteed because it Purchases Goods from direct Ship. Which come from Bangladesh's most oversize ship breaking yard - Vatiary, Chattogram, after that goods are served Very well by an expert & reliable team. Through "A.Z Ship Supply" prompt and quality services we always maintain everlasting relations with its customer. We Promise our Honorable Customer for providing goods in sure time & required location. Now, our supplied goods electrical, are well-performing in the fleets functioning in the world. So, if you have any inquiries, please contact us, without any hesitation. Your cooperation will be highly appreciated. Warms Regards, Mohammed A.Z Ship Supply M-Rahman Tower(4th Floor), (4218), Chittagong, Bangladesh. M- +880 1819-198197 E- info@azshipsupply.net www.azshipsupply.net
SILVER LAKE
Gerfe Cadeliña, 38, of Sierra Bullones town, was found dead inside his cabin aboard the 'Silver Lake' on June 28, 2024, while it was docked at Teesport in what has been initially considered a suicide. However, the family of the fatality, believed that there was foul play behind his death. Gerfe Cadeliña was allegedly found hanging dead with a rope around his neck at the restroom of his quarters on the vessel. The ship left Teesport again on July 2.
ARMAN 114
A court in Batam has delayed the trial and reading of the verdict on July 4, 2024, in a case of the 'Arman 114', that was caught conducting an illegal STS oil transfer and charged with causing pollution after the master of the vessel disappeared five days before the court was scheduled to convene in the latest turn in a case that started over a year ago. The master of the 'Arman 114', Mahmoud Abdelaziz Mohamed Hatiba, aged 43 and believed to be an Egyptian citizen, was facing the possibility of seven years in prison and a fine of more than $305,000. If he failed to pay the fine, a further six months in jail would have been added to his sentence. Prosecutors also asked the court to seize the crude oil tanker and auction it off along with its cargo. Initial reports in 2023 said there were more than 272,000 metric tons of crude oil aboard although later reports said it was just under 167,000 metric tons of light crude oil. Several entities presented themselves to the court claiming to be the order of the tanker while the Iranian Embassy in Jakarta has denied ownership and said the vessel is owned by an Iranian citizen. The 'Arman 114' has repeatedly appeared on watch lists from various organizations accused of being used to smuggle Iranian oil. The ship is believed to be registered in Iran but it has not undergone inspections according to the databases in years and its management and insurance are unknown. In June 2023, the Indonesian Coast Guard discovered the vessel alongside second tanker displaying the name 'S Tinos' and reporting to be registered in Cameroon. However, the ship was using the identity of a tanker that had been scrapped five years earlier. Neither ship was displaying a flag or transmitting accurate AIS data. The 'Arman 114' was displaying a position in the Red Sea at the time. When the ships were discovered, they attempted to flee, and the Malaysian authorities assisted the Indonesian conterparts in stopping the 'Arman 114' which was detained with a total of 29 people aboard, including the wife and child of the security officer. The crew was reported to be from Iran and Egypt. They were also being detained in Batam with reports that they had come ashore without proper paperwork. Three months after the vessels were discovered, Indonesian prosecutors in Oct 2023 added charges of dumping waste. They had tested oil found in the water and determined it came from the Arman 114. The captain allegedly had ordered the crew to dump oily water overboard. Shortly before the hearing scheduled for last week, the Attorney General’s Office confirmed it had a visit from the Iranian Embassy requesting the ship and its cargo be released. Iranian officials denied the ownership of the tanker or the cargo aboard. The court went into recess after the master failed to report for the hearing and was now due to reconvene on July 4. The court has ordered if the master can be located that he should be detained, while prosecutors are pressing for the court to proceed with the seizure of the vessel and its cargo. It was unclear if any of the other crew members might face charges for the transfer, pollution, and attempts to display a false identity and flee from authorities. Report with photo: https://maritime-executive.com/article/master-of-iranian-shadow-tanker-disappears-days-before-indonesian-trial
CHUAN HONG 68
The 'Chuan Hong 68', which had desecrated the wrecks of the Royal Navy battleship HMS 'Prince of Wales' and the battlecruiser HMS 'Repulse', which were sunk by Japanese forces during the invasion of the Malay Peninsula in Dec 1941, has run into trouble with the law once more. The notorious dredger has been detained by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) again, this time over paperwork violations. In 2023, the Malaysian authorities had detained the 'Chuan Hong 68' off Johor for allegedly crushing and removing scrap from the protected war graves. In May 2023, local residents obtained video of the vessel unloading what appeared to be a large cannon, dripping with mud, at a Malaysian scrapyard. During the May 2023 boarding of the 'Chuan Hong 68', inspectors found rusting artillery shells and other scrap. The penalty for the crew members could be as much as two years in prison if convicted of desecrating wrecks. In Jan 2024, Johor Police's unexploded ordnance team was called out to deal with aged, rusted artillery shells found at the scrapyard where the 'Chuan Hong 68' offloaded her cargo. This included two 130mm shells - roughly equivalent to a 5.25-inch gun, of which the HMS 'Prince of Wales' had eight - and 55 aging 40mm shells, the standard size for the "pom-pom" antiaircraft guns used by the Royal Navy in WWII. The MMEA has not released an update on the case over the course of the intervening 12 months, and the 'Chuan Hong 68' has repeatedly returned to the same operating area northeast of the Singapore Strait, often disappearing from AIS for weeks at a time. This is the same region where she was operating when she was detained in 2023, and is approximately the same area as the HMS 'Prince of Wales' last known position. On the afternoon of July 1, 2024, the MMEA and the Royal Malaysian Navy boarded the 'Chuan Hong 68' just off Tanjung Hantu, Perak state, on the opposite side of the Strait of Malacca from the dredge's previous area of operation, and about 300 nautical miles northwest of Singapore. This time, the inspectors did not find illegal scrap, but they did spot 60 unregistered LPG tanks on deck. They also found paperwork irregularities in the vessel's documents and port clearance certificates. The ship and the entire crew have been detained pending an investigation.