In a statement the organisation acknowledged that the investigation of the incident involving the 74,998-dwt Kerala (built 2009) is ongoing but said it is already convinced that the vessel was seized by pirates on 18 January.
“The evidence gathered thus far by the INTERPOL Incident Response Team has allowed the Liberian Registry to conclude that the vessel was hijacked by pirates,” it said in an announcement released Thursday afternoon.
During the hijacking the registry claims the pirates disabled the ship’s AIS and other pieces of communication equipment so that it could not be tracked from shore or satellite and also painted over identifying features like its funnel, name and IMO number.
The organisation, which has been observing the collection of evidence and participating...
