A vessel in the Indian ocean was diverted after its chef murdered the ship’s captain in his own cabin.
Law enforcement in Mauritius arrested a chef of a bulk carrier after he confessed to killing his own captain, according to the Maritime Executive. The vessel was en route to Haldia, India, when the chef confessed to killing the captain, the report said. The ship was then reportedly diverted to the nearest port so that law enforcement could properly make the arrest and investigate the allegations. The chef, 33-year-old Calopez Alfred Kenneth Bonghanoy, said he stabbed the captain 45 times after the pair got into an argument.
On Nov. 21, Bonghanoy confessed to his fellow crew members that he had murdered the captain, Rolly Baquillos Solante. The officers alerted the crew, and they began to search for the captain.
PHILADELPHIA HOMICIDES PASS 500, MAKING 2021 CITY’S DEADLIEST YEAR
The crew reportedly found Bonghanoy in a hallway repeating his confession of killing the captain. The crew then found the captain in his cabin in a pool of blood, officials said. The ship was then diverted to the nearest port in Mauritius, where local authorities arrested the chef, the report added.
During the interrogation, Bonghanoy reportedly told police on Nov. 20 that the captain had frequently insulted him in front of crew members and an intense argument eventually led to the stabbing.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Mauritian authorities have taken the passports of all the crew and are conducting an investigation. Police say they could not find the weapon and suspect that Bonghanoy threw it overboard.
Murders on container ships are uncommon but not rare. In September 2020, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Central California charged a Filipino seaman with stabbing a fellow crew member to death. In 2019, a chief officer was accused of murdering two men and leaving six men missing at sea on a Taiwanese fishing vessel.
