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Tanit Pirates Sentenced

Last Friday, three of five Somali pirates who seized the French yacht Tanit in 2009 were sentenced in a French court to nine years in prison. The pirates boarded the 47-ft Colin Archer design — which was carrying two couples and a three-year-old boy — on April 4, about 500 miles off the Somali coast. The French Navy steadfastly refused to negotiate with the pirates and, on April 10, French commandos stormed the boat, killing two pirates and Tanit‘s skipper, 28-year-old Florent Lemacon. 

Three surviving pirates from the Tanit attack have been sentenced to nine years in prison for their actions, which led to the death of an innocent man.

© 2013 French Ministry of Defense

Lawyers for the pirates asked the court for leniency, claiming that the men, aged 26 to 31, had been suffering extreme poverty and were coerced into becoming pirates. Prosecutors rejected the claims, saying they’d been motivated by easy money instead.

Florent Lemacon was accidentally killed in front of his young son by French commandos.

Tanit
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC

A spokesman for Chloe Lemacon, Florent’s widow, says that the family is not looking for vengeance, but believes the pirates should be held responsible for their actions. He also said that "French state leaders decided to teach the piracy masterminds on the continent a lesson. I believe that Florent Lemacon died for reasons of national interest. This operation was meant as a powerful signal to the Somalis, while the hostages were put on a backburner."

Tom Hanks portrays Captain Richard Phillips in the film about the Maersk Alabama pirate attack.

© Columbia Pictures

At the same time as the Tanit attack, pirates captured the U.S.-flagged container ship Maersk Alabama. Captain Richard Phillips successfully negotiated his crew’s release by sacrificing his own freedom, and later was rescued by Navy SEALs. His story is told in the newly released film Captain Phillips, starring Tom Hanks in the titular role. 

1 Comment

  1. Andrew Koehl 1 year ago

    With sincere condolences, Chloe Lemacon and the other adults on this yacht, ignored repeated warnings not to make this journey. Their selfish actions endangered not only their own. lives but through lives of the courageous responders who had to come to their rescue. Shame on them and how dare they criticize their rescuers. Please take responsibility for your actions and apologize to those who risked themselves to save you from your irresponsible actions.

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