Somali pirates on trial in France for hijacking

Face life term if convicted

PARIS, March 27, (AFP): Seven suspected Somali pirates are due in court in Paris on Tuesday over the hijacking of a French yacht that left the owner dead and his wife facing a hellish kidnapping ordeal.

Christian and Evelyne Colombo had sold everything to make their dream voyage around the world.

But around lunchtime on Sept 8, 2011, naval authorities received a distress signal from their “Tribal Kat” catamaran. They had left the port of Aden in Yemen five days earlier and were heading for Oman, a journey that took them through notoriously pirate-infested waters.

A German frigate found the boat several hours later. There were bullet holes in the deck and a pool of blood with a pair of glasses floating in it. No one was onboard. Two days later, a Spanish warship located the skiff suspected to belong to the pirates. They tried to approach but turned away when the attackers dragged Evelyne Colombo into view, a gun to her head.

The Spanish military prepared a raid and attacked a few hours later, leaving two pirates dead and the remaining seven arrested.

Evelyne Colombo told her rescuers that her husband’s body had been dumped into the sea. It was never found. She had spent a nightmarish 48 hours in the hands of the pirates, kept under a tarpaulin, drenched by waves and in constant fear of death.

The trial of the seven men, aged between 25 and 32, is due to run for a fortnight from March 29.

They have given their professions as policeman, taxi driver, fisherman or even “coolie” -- a old colonial-era term meaning “porter”. They face possible life imprisonment if convicted. At least one may not face trial, having reportedly developed psychological problems in prison -- a result not just of the isolated detention they currently face, but also of the miserable lives they experienced before.