(TheGuardian) Six former British soldiers jailed on weapons charges in India have been found not guilty on appeal, according to supporters. The men, who were working on the AdvanFort anti-piracy ship MV Seaman Guard Ohio, are: Nick Dunn from Ashington, Northumberland Billy Irving from Connel, Argyll Ray Tindall from Chester Paul Towers from … [Read more...]
The Chennai Six – Justice for Crew of M/V Seaman Guard Ohio
By Captain George Livingstone - Some stories are worth telling over, this is one. Perhaps the reader will recall a rather spectacular international story from 2013 regarding an anti-piracy ship called the ‘Seaman Guard Ohio’. It was a floating armory ship owned by an American company named AdvanFort. The ship contracted and supplied mobile ‘anti-piracy’ … [Read more...]
India Sentences ‘Seaman Guard Ohio’ Crew to Five Years in Prison in Arms Case
By Sandhya Ravishankar CHENNAI, India, Jan 11 (Reuters) - An Indian court on Monday sentenced crew members of a private American ship, including 25 foreigners, to five years in prison for illegal possession of arms in Indian waters in a verdict that could spark diplomatic tension. The crew, which included foreign nationals from Ukraine, Estonia and six British former … [Read more...]
India Drops Charges Against Advanfort Private Security Crew
A High Court in India has dropped the charges against the crew and guards from a US-based private security ship 8 months after the legal battle began. Washington, D.C.-based security firm Advanfort reports that the Madras High Court has quashed charges against the 35-member crew of the security ship MV Seaman Guard Ohio after the court could not substantiate any of the … [Read more...]
SAMI Responds to Harsh Accusations from AdvanFort
AdvanFort, the US-based maritime security firm owned by Palestinian businessman Samir Farajallah and run by his son Ahmed, withdrew today from the Security Association for the Maritime Industry (SAMI) on the grounds that after repeated requests made to SAMI to assist in the freeing of his company's security guards held in India, "his calls and emails went unanswered." SAMI … [Read more...]