In early December, the Vietnamese-owned bulker Debi and its crew were detained in India after 22 kg of cocaine, valued at $26 million, was discovered hidden aboard the ship. The crew of 21 Vietnamese citizens has been living aboard the ship, facing depression and frustration, as they awaited the court’s decision. The Indian district court has now set stringent terms for the release of the vessel, including a $12 million bond and a $1.2 million bank guarantee to be provided by the ship owner.
The crew had been detained for interviews by Indian customs authorities, but it was reported that they were being cleared of involvement in the smuggling. The crew’s cellphones and computers were confiscated, leaving them isolated and unable to contact their families in Vietnam. In mid-January, an altercation aboard the ship resulted in the vessel’s third engineer jumping into the harbor, possibly as a suicide attempt.
The 611-foot bulker, registered in Panama, had arrived in India from Indonesia and was scheduled to make a port stop on its way to Denmark. The cocaine was discovered attached to one of the vessel’s cranes, with authorities believing that India was not the intended destination for the drugs. It was suspected that the cocaine was to be removed from the ship when it reached Europe.
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