‘Were forced to drink toilet water’: 16 sailors freed by Nigeria reach home after 10 mths

KOCHI: Three Keralite sailors, who were released from Nigerian captivity after 10 months and reached home on June 10, told the media they were forced to drink toilet water in captivity.
The three, Sanu Joseph from Kochi, who was the chief officer of the Ship; Heroic Idun along with V VIjith, third officer of the ship from Kol-lam and Milton D’ couth, who was the ship’s oiler from Mulavukad in Kochi, reached home on Saturday, along with 13 others who were held captive.
The ship along with its crew were taken into custody first by Equatorial Guinea on allegations the ship had crossed its territorial waters and were there incustody for three months.
There were reports the shipping company paid a heavy ransom to the Equatorial Guinea, but they were not released and Government of Nigeria brought in fresh charges that the crew had smuggled oil from Nigerian oil tankers. The Nigerian police took the sailors into custody.