A Nigerian pirate convicted for hijacking a Dutch freighter has been charged again for a previous piracy incident in 2017. Itoruboemi Benson Lobia, the leader of a pirate action group, was arrested in South Africa in 2018 and extradited to the Netherlands, where he was convicted in 2022 for hijacking the FWN Rapide. During the attack, the pirates held 11 crewmembers hostage for ransom negotiations, with ForestWave eventually paying $340,000 to secure their release.
Lobia was sentenced to 8.5 years in Dutch prison for the FWN Rapide attack. However, he faces additional charges for a separate hijacking incident involving the German merchant ship BBC Caribbean in 2017. During this incident, armed pirates abducted eight crewmembers, who were eventually released after negotiations. Forensic evidence, including DNA traces linking Lobia to the crime, led to a second investigation and a request for permission to prosecute him again.
The Dutch Public Prosecution Service and the National Expertise and Operations Unit launched a second investigation following the DNA match. Authorities in South Africa have granted permission to prosecute Lobia for the BBC Caribbean hijacking. An examining magistrate issued a custody order to begin the case, indicating that Lobia may face additional penalties for his involvement in multiple piracy incidents.