Even as cyclone “Phet” that finally hit Oman, deterred anyone from the Gujarat coastline to venture into the sea, some thieves had a heyday trying to take advantage of the fear of the storm to plunder the “Platinum-II,” the condemned ship anchored in the high seas off the Bhavnagar coast in the Saurashtra region.
Originally registered in the United States, “Platinum-II” changed hands and nomenclature several times before it was brought to the Alang ship-breaking yard for dismantling. Work on the ship was stalled due to complaints that it carried hazardous and toxic materials. It was plundered when the security personnel on the ship were withdrawn to the shore due to the cyclone threat last week.
Anchored for months
The ship had remained anchored in the high seas near Gopinath off the Saurashtra coast for the last few months after the Central government and the Gujarat Maritime Board failed to take a decision on permitting the vessel to berth at Alang for dismantling. The ship was being guarded by the security personnel in the high seas.
The Bhavnagar crime branch police said as the security personnel were withdrawn from the ship for some time, some burglars tried to take advantage of the situation and looted copper, brass plates and some other materials worth over Rs. 18 lakh from the ship.
“Will be nabbed soon”
Braving the cyclone, however, did not prove to be very fruitful for them. The police have already nabbed two of the burglars and recovered some stolen articles from them and based on the inputs provided by them, were looking for three more accomplices. The police said they already have the identity of the burglars and it was only a matter of time before all the five were nabbed by the police.
