A NIGERIAN oil ship believed to have been hijacked and pirated from Lagos, which managed to find its way into Ghanaian territorial waters, has been intercepted by a combine team of the Ghana Navy and the National Security at the Tema port on Thursday.

A source at the Tema Port, who spoke to DAILY GUIDE about the ship, indicated that the ship was carrying about 5,200 metric tonnes of refined fuel which according to the source was going to be dispatched and sold on the Ghanaian market.

The ship, African Prince, had on board 22 persons who are said to be Nigerians and 6 Pakistani nationals, as well as a corpse of a 49-year-old unidentified crew member of the vessel who was said to be a chef.

The source also noted that the Ghana Navy received information about from the Personnel and Identity Club that the ship which had been allegedly hijacked was making its way into Ghana.

The content of the ship was also reported to have been stolen from Nigeria to Ghana, perhaps due to the insufficiency of fuel in Ghana.

The source also revealed that the ship, which was alleged to have been pirated and hijacked by some persons believed to be members of a big mafia group in Nigeria, has for a long time been on the sea, possibly waiting for the appropriate time to strike, but the ship, according to the source, was not lucky and was intercepted by the Ghana Navy and the National Security to the Tema anchorage.

DAILY GUIDE’s source indicated that the ownership of the ship is still unknown and has therefore been detained at the Tema Port, together with the crew, pending further investigations.

The body of the chef has been deposited at 37 Military Hospital mortuary.