The Ministry of Public Security decided to take legal action in the hijacking case of oil tanker Sunrise 689 in order to expand the investigation, and identify and pursue the hijackers.

After cooperating with the shipbuilding and insurance companies as well as technicians to examine the black box, the Department for Investigation of Social Order-Related Crimes (C45) concluded that the tanker was robbed by pirates on its way from Singapore to Vietnam.

C45 is currently working with the Ministry of Public Security’s Information Sharing Centre (ISC) under the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combatting Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) to investigate pirate groups in the Malacca Strait and Southeast Asian region with a view to capturing the Sunrise 689 robbers.

Vietnamese oil tanker Sunrise 689, with an 18-member crew and over 5,000 tonnes of oil, was hijacked and robbed of a third of its oil by a gang of armed thugs, causing an estimated loss of approximately 30 billion VND (1.4 million USD) on October 2.

According to the International Maritime Bureau, the Sunrise case is the 12th piracy incident involving the hijacking of tankers in Southeast Asia since April, which are often released after the cargo is removed.
Vietnam is now a member of the Southeast Asia and Asia conventions on combatting piracy./.