Prosecutors demand 7-year sentences for piracy

Prosecutors demand 7-year sentences for piracy

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 ROTTERDAM, Netherlands — Dutch prosecutors have demanded seven-year prison sentences for five Somali men accused of attempting to hijack a cargo ship, in Europe's first piracy trial stemming from the rising tide of banditry in the Gulf of Aden. The five suspects were arrested by Danish marines in January 2009 after they tried to board a Dutch Antilles-registered freighter off the coast of Somalia. They claim they were not hijacking the ship, but asking its crew for food and fuel because their skiff's engine had been malfunctioning. But prosecutors rejected that claim Wednesday as not credible and asked judges to sentence each man to seven years. The maximum sentence is 12 years. Source: AP