Police have been granted a further custody extension by Southampton Magistrates Court to question 7 Nigerian men at the centre of the Nave Andromeda incident off the coast of the Isle of Wight on Sunday. The Nigerian nationals were arrested on suspicion of seizing or exercising control of a ship by use of threats or force under Sec 9(1) and (3) of Aviation and Maritime and Security Act 1990, and following the latest extension will remain in custody until the evening of Thursday 29th October. Officers have 24 hours to question someone in custody. After the first 24 hours, we can then apply for 12 more hours with authorisation from a senior officer. After that, all applications must be applied via the courts and authorised by a judge. A maximum of 96 hours can be granted.
As previously reported at 10.04 on Sunday concerns were raised for the welfare of the crew onboard the oil tanker Nave Andromeda, It was reported that a number of stowaways were on board and they had made threats towards the crew, who went into lockdown. The incident was brought to an end when the Special Boat Service boarded the vessel and took control of the situation. All 22 crew members are safe and well and are speaking with investigators to establish exactly what happened at sea on Sunday. Earlier today 11 Albanian stowaways were located on a separate vessel in Southampton Docks.
