Nigeria Abroad
A suspected Nigerian pirate captured by the Danish navy in the Gulf of Guinea in November and brought to Denmark for prosecution appeared in court in Copenhagen on Friday charged with the attempted manslaughter of Danish soldiers.
Three other suspected Nigerian pirates picked up by a Danish frigate at the same time and who faced the same charges were freed on Thursday after Denmark failed to find a country in the region to take them, the Danish Armed Forces said.
The three, who had been detained aboard the frigate Esbern Snare in the Gulf of Guinea, were put to sea in a small dinghy with enough food and fuel for them to reach safely to shore, after the charges against them were withdrawn.
“They have no relation to Denmark, and the crime they have been charged with was committed far from Denmark. They simply do not belong here, and that’s why I think it’s the right thing to do,” Danish Justice Minister Nick Haekkerup said in a statement.
The frigate, which deployed off West Africa in October, intervened in an alleged attack on a commercial vessel the following month, killing four pirates and taking another four suspects on board the frigate. Denmark has since failed to find a country in the region to agree to take the four.
The fourth suspect, who was taken to a hospital in Ghana with injuries and later had one leg amputated, was brought to Denmark for prosecution because he could not safely be released at…
