Scots sailor tells tale of piracy ordeal in book

Arbroath man was held captive for five days after pirates boarded ship and demanded money for his safety

He is the Scottish sailor who was captured by Nigerian pirates and held at gunpoint in a squalid jungle camp.

Joe Westland was told by one of his teenage captors that he would be burned alive unless a £750,000 ransom was paid for his release.

Now the 66-year-old grandfather has revealed every detail of his traumatic ordeal in a new book to be released next month.

Mr Westland, from Arbroath, first went to sea as a fresh-faced 15-year-old in 1965, working on fishing boats before he began a career in the Merchant Navy.

In May 2013 the crane on Westland’s ship broke down and he was forced to put down anchor close to the Nigerian coast.

The pirates took their chance and boarded the boat, breaking the windows on the bridge to bypass bolted steel doors.

Mr Westland said: “The only way in was through the bridge windows. They smashed every one. All the lights went out. I locked my door and hid myself in the toilet. They smashed the doors in with a sledgehammer and I was dragged out.

“We were close to land to make it easier for the company to reach us while we waited for repairs to be carried out. In hindsight I shouldn’t have agreed to do that. And I should have moved the vessel every couple of days. I blame myself for that.”

With the ship out of action the only crew that remained were Nigerian – and the pirates “didn’t want them”, according to Mr Westland.

He said: “I was the only expat on board so they took me. I was in a state of shock. I was lying in water at the bottom of their boat. One of them hit me with a gun. He told me not to move.

“They threatened to set me on fire. The boy that said it couldn’t have been older than 14.”

It was in his darkest moment that Mr Westland decided to fake a heart attack, which ultimately forced the hand of his captors and ended the horse trading with the company he worked for.

He started rolling on the ground, eyes swivelling, tongue lolling, shaking violently. Fearing they were about to lose their bargaining chip, the pirates settled for just £56,000 and handed Mr Westland over five days after he was taken.

He was advised by professionals that writing a book could be cathartic and bring closure.

A Captain’s Ransom is out on May 28.

Picture: Paul Reid. Joe Westland has written about his horrifying experience when he thought he was going to be killed.