Honduras: Sailing Boat Boarded and Robbed by Pirates

[jeanathon]

Originally Posted by atoll

i once saw an inpromptu public stoning of a pick-pocket in a tanzanian market.
apparently someone had seen this guy stealing and shouted"Mwesi",swahili for thief.

people started picking up stones and throwing them at him untill he was cornered,then the rocks started!

quite a large crowd had gathered by the time the police intervened and dragged off the lifeless body.

people often equate 3rd world countries with lawlessness,but what i saw that day was justice in its swifitist form!

The problem here of course is what keeps people from crying thief just because they don't like you.

[atoll]

Originally Posted by jeanathon

The problem here of course is what keeps people from crying thief just because they don't like you.

seems to have worked quite well for the last 2000 years or so!,but what the hell he might have become a thief in the future if they got the wrong guy!

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by jeanathon

I would be interested to hear ideas about prevention. Something along the lines of not appearing to be easy prey. Other than a dog and a scowl I got nothing.

Oh, I've heard some. Stay out of areas with know pirate activity is the best.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

The fact is the vast majority of cruisers who are faced with such criminals are likely to be caught surprised. Coupled with the fact their is often friends or family aboard who could be injured, means the most typical response is acquiescence. It's not wrong or right, it's just a matter of fact.

Even when faced with death few people turn to violence, the world is full of situations where people simply got killed and remained passive throughout.

Armed defence on any small boat , cruising internationally is virtually impossible. It's amusing to discuss the options , in practice it's " junk science". The "advice" is virtually worthless. The fundamental failing of armed response is (a) you will get time to react. And (b) you will react faster and better then your opponent, neither is usually true in the real world. For a very select few cruises that have very specific training and are prepared to flout national law, it "may" be possible , for the vast vast majority of us , it isn't remotely useful as a strategy. In fact it could be a highly misleading waste of time.

The world is not full of crime, most of it is pleasant and law abiding., visit those places. But always remember a rich man alone in a poor place always is a target.

Dave

Very well said! The majority of people(male and female) in civilized countries have never been in a fight, let alone , a life threatening situation. One can speak tomes of bravado in an online chat, but fail miserably when confronted with real violence. Unless you have a history of defending yourself successfully in the past, you will never really know how you will react when confronted with a serious assault. And,if you become "frozen" while the assault is occuring and survive, you will be forever scarred with this unsettling memory--especially if the attack degrades and humiliates you and your loved ones. As Goboatingnow states "visit those places" that are pleasant and law abiding. Let your dollars do the voting.

[jeanathon]

Avoidance is certainly part of a solution to being violently attacked/robbed. It is not the whole solution
That would be akin to sinking a less than seaworthy ship because you TRIED to avoid that bad storm. Sh!t happens and you had better be prepared with forethought, training, and tools at your disposal. You still might sink, but at least you gave yourself a chance.

[IntoMyHealth]

Originally Posted by rognvald

... "visit those places" that are pleasant and law abiding. Let your dollars do the voting.

Where might some of those law abiding places be?

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by IntoMyHealth

Where might some of those law abiding places be?

Hereabouts

No padlock on my dinghy.

[storyinframes]

Originally Posted by terminalcitygrl

"I am an Indian and by your post I guess we are talking about Goa."

Actually Tamil Nadu - Mamallapuram. Gave Goa a miss.

Surprised! Didn't knew East coast can present such problems. I know for sure Goa can sometimes get out of hand but not TN.
Anyways,
Cheers

[NorthPacific]

People the world over suffer from home invasions muggings random acts of violence and yet their is a recurring theme of advice from law enforcement from many countries. That to resist is not the the best option.

Has anyone wondered why the pirates do not arm themselves with single shot flare guns? Why criminals don't use them to rob or pillage. Why armies have automatic weapons?

If it was legal anyplace to pack a effective anti-personal weapon that I could use with impunity I would. But only if the world had Texas like laws that allow you to gun down anyone that looks threatening.

But like Peter Blake, would I point it or just start shooting? Would I have to pack my AK when I went ashore? Would that invite a bullet in the back from someone who wanted my AK?

I hate the feeling of feeling useless of going down without a fight, but to start a gunfight, even in the westerns the farmers always lost to the bad guys. So I think I will use the smarts I have and try to be less of a target.

I will finally relate an experience a friend had recently in Malaysia. They anchored in a bay and where approached by a outboard driven craft by 4 men with black ski masks(very common is asia to protect from the sun) and at least 2 of the them showing AK's. The men came along side and asked for booze. My mate met them with a bright smile and a wave was very positive an confident. Said no way to the idea of booze but told them to wait and brought up a carton of cigies. The guys where well happy and went back to shore.

In the morning the boat came roaring back. Not an attack but to give them fish and crabs for breakfast. Could have been quite the shoot out? Brains, some pre planning, right attitude.

To anyone who fancy's there chances good luck and I hope you will have a safe outcome and do not then spend years in some less then happy gaol cell.

[JayCall]

Reading the entire thread, it seems to me that the discussions have assumed that the confrontation is already in close quarters. As has been pointed out in many posts, there are a myriad of actions and reactions dependent on the experience and personalities of the cruiser. However, I think that, if a robbery/piracy attempt is while underway, the more obvious action is to try and avoid getting to the close quarters confrontation. Once poster mentioned heading toward another boat with much activity. Good idea. But what can you do using your boat to avoid close quarters? In our case, we are a 58', 50 ton high freeboard trawler. While slow, and obviously unable to outrun a small boat, we are pretty maneuverable. I have no issue with doing everything possible to make boarding impossible including ramming or bumping a small boat to put guys in the water. If I can keep a small boat 50' or more from my vessel, I am not too much concerned with a guy with a pistol. Obviusly an AK may be a different matter. But, as has been pointed out here, training and practice is paramount. I doubt the attacker has the shooting ability from 50' or beyond, from a bobbing boat, to hit anyhing he might be aiming at. I am willing to put up with a few gouges to the gelcoat or bullet holes in the pilothouse to avoid a close-quarters situation.

Admittedly the above is much harder for a small sailboat to accomplish, but, in truth, once you are in the close quarters situation, you truly are at the mercy of the attackers.

Also admittedly, all of the above is hypothetical for us, we have never had to face the situation. But avoidance of a close quarters situation at almost all costs seems to me to be the best defense.

[JayCall]

I guess I should also note that, if you try avoidance or dumping them in the water and they succeed in getting aboard, they are going to be really ticked off and probably kill you, dump you overboard and sail off into the sunset!

So I guess there is no one answer to any of these situations.

[mrlee]

Hello all. I have been reading this thread for awhile now, and it seems that alot of people seem not to realize how different the people in the so called "third world" countries think. I have been living in Mex. for almost 9 years now, and it is sooo much different here. There is NO security, no thoughts of any kind of trust, and you cannot trust ANYbody. Period! It is the culture of these countries to take what they can, when they can. I had a very difficult time with this when I first arrived. As soon as a person sees a GRINGO, dollar signs flash in their eyes. And do not think for a minute that they don't read these threads and see how many people are willing to just give it up with no resistance whatsoever. I am not into confrontations of any kind, but I have learned by living here that you must stand up for yourself. Exactly how to do this in a given situation, I couldn't give advice on this. I, for one, would rather take my chances with some sort of weapons, be it flare guns, spear guns, whatever, than just be a patsy and give them my hard earned things. I know it's hard for some people to realize that "they" do not think like we were brought up to think in civilization. It's a shame...In closing, I'd like to wish EVERYONE happy days and may we not fall prey to these people...God bless.

[virginia boy]

Originally Posted by rognvald

Very well said! The majority of people(male and female) in civilized countries have never been in a fight, let alone , a life threatening situation. One can speak tomes of bravado in an online chat, but fail miserably when confronted with real violence. Unless you have a history of defending yourself successfully in the past, you will never really know how you will react when confronted with a serious assault. And,if you become "frozen" while the assault is occuring and survive, you will be forever scarred with this unsettling memory--especially if the attack degrades and humiliates you and your loved ones. As Goboatingnow states "visit those places" that are pleasant and law abiding. Let your dollars do the voting.

In my younger days I reckon I was in well over a hundred fights on the streets of Wash DC. (three stab wounds and a rack of scars and broken bones to prove it) In my defense, I don't think I instigated more than maybe a few..it was a bad area and a bad time) My point is, that I learned that most people (including big scary gangsters) have a very hard time hurting other people and it takes a special kind of person to be able to plunge a knife into the belly of another human being. Everyone believes that when the time comes to defend their loved ones, they will be able to do what it takes, but I'm telling you that you probably won't, or you will hesitate and lose the fight, or you won't be able to finish the job. I doubt that one in a hundred would have the guts to kill a man and unless your that one, your dead.

My advice is if you don't know for certain that you can go "full bore" and kill someone, don't pull that knife out. You're probably going to have the knife taken from you and I hate to even think of the consequences of that. Can you keep fighting even after he has broken your face bones?

For what it's worth, most suburbanites won't even throw a punch to defend themselves against attack! I've been amazed at how many grown men will take an ass kicking instead of defending themselves. I've seen grown men cry after being punched.

On the other hand, as the "victim" of a whole rack of attempted strong-arm robberies mostly by two guys, I can say that I only lost money twice. Most robbers are not bad-asses and they're not crazy. Every time that I've pulled out my blade in self defense I've walked away intact and unharmed. They don't want to get hurt either. I was stabbed because I didn't have a knife and fought back anyway. Still kept my money but wish I'd given it up. I hope you get something out of all that mess.

Being older and wiser today, if I were boarded at anchor, even I would just go ahead and give them my "robbery money" but keep the main stash hidden well. Depends on how the situation "feels".

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by sailstoo

Interesting and applicable Cruising World article on carrying a hand gun aboard by author and two time circumnavigator Fatty Goodlander.

Unarmed but Uneasy | Cruising World

Indeed.
You might try to be the toughest (& the most prepared, always "armed & on guard") guy on the block ... or not.
I wouldn't choose to stand armed guard 24/7, against all comers. Should I not, (I suspect) my secured firearm is not likely to provide much personal safety.

[ty.gregory]

Outlaw Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood) - Are you going to pull those pistols or whistle Dixie?.mp4 - YouTube


I think this is in order...