Kenya Sentences Somali Pirates
Mombasa (SDN)-A court in Mombasa, Kenya sentenced 11 Somalis to prison after they were caught attacking a French ship off the waters of that nation.
The accused pirates petitioned the court to serve their sentences in a Somali prison, however the judge who heard the case denied their request.
Judge S.K. Gacheru stated that this case and the sentencing is meant to be a deterrent to other pirates.
He also added that the attack on the ship endangered those on board and that after serving their sentences the 11 men face deportation to Somalia.
The men attacked the ship named Nivose in 2009 however they never made it on board and were unable to capture it.
The lawyer of the accused Ng’etich Samson argued in vain that since the ship was not captured and a request for ransom was not made, then the case should be dismissed and his clients should be released.
The eleven men will join others convicted of piracy in the Kenyan prison system. Kenya has been prosecuting and jailing Somali pirates since 2006.
SDN-Mombasa