Assault - The Caribbean Safety and Security Net

3190 – Assault in Saint Martin (France) – Sandy Ground Bridge

Incident Date: 2023-12-28 at 05:00

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: unknown

Secured: Locked

Source Type: 2nd Hand Report

Incident Details: After stealing a flaregun/flares from another yacht, (see 3189) five hooded men broke through the companionway of an occupied monohull and fired flares/smoke bombs into the cabin. A crew member used wasp spray to repel the attackers. The police were called and the Coast Guard summoned on VHF16. The police arrived about 45 minutes later and took a preliminary report. The captain received a head injury and was later treated/released from the hospital.

December 28, 2023

3176 – Assault in Colombia – Santa Marta – Taganga Bay

Incident Date: 2023-12-22 at 22:30

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: Everything – electronics ( InReach, laptop, phones ), cash, tools +++

Secured: Does not apply

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: A yacht anchored alone in the bay was boarded by four masked men each armed with a handgun at 2230HRS. The captain was pistol whipped and crew held at gunpoint while the boat was ransacked. The attackers demanded the drugs they thought were onboard. They stole electronics (inReach, laptop, phones), cash and jewelry, plus other assorted items. ||The thieves were unable to steal the well secured dinghy as the keys were lost in the mess they created. Some of the thieves paddled their unpowered boat ashore to unload the stolen items and returned for more and their companions. The entire event lasted about an hour. The captain self-treated his head wounds. ||A report to consular officials was planned, and the boat left the bay.

December 22, 2023

3175 – Assault in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – Mayreau – Saline Bay

Incident Date: 2023-12-22 at 18:30

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: nothing

Secured: N/A

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: A cruiser returned to his beached dinghy in Saline Bay at approximately 18:30HRS. He was attacked by a man with a machete, and thrown down on the sand and held there with a knee to his back.||The attacker demanded his money and "gold". The cruiser told him there was 5 ECD in the wallet in the dinghy and was asked if there was money on the boat. The cruiser told him only the 5 ECD as there was no ATM on Mayreau. He wore no watch or jewelry. ||The attacker threatened to cut off his head and told him to remain down, which he did as the assailant moved away into the trees. After a short time he called out that he could go. The cruiser was not injured and rowed to a friends boat nearby. The 5 ECD was left behind. ||The next day a police report was made.

December 22, 2023

3110 – Assault in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – St. Vincent – Buccament Bay

Incident Date: 2023-10-10 at 00:15

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: Cash, ring, binoculars, fishing/diving gear, large flashlight

Secured: Does not apply

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: CSSN NOTE: This report replaces a previous PRELIMINARY 2nd hand report (3105)||A yacht with two persons on board anchored alone in Buccament Bay, St. Vincent around 1000HRS. At 0015HRS they were boarded by two men, armed with a gun and a knife who broke through the companionway door. The crew was held at gunpoint (head) and knifepoint (back). The armed men ransacked (and damaged) the yacht before roughly taking a ring from the woman's finger, which later required medical treatment. Also cash, binoculars, fishing/diving gear, and a large flashlight were stolen.||After about an hour onboard the men left rowing a wooden boat. A report was made to the police and Coast Guard.

October 10, 2023

3072 – Assault in Trinidad and Tobago – Trinidad – Scotland Bay

Incident Date: 2023-08-02 at 20:00

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: cash, 2 phones, 1 tablet and all credit cards, dive mask

Secured: N/A

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: A singlehander anchored his yacht in Scotland Bay, Trinidad. No other yachts were present. He purchased fish from a local fisherman. The fisherman returned again a few days later accompanied by a prostitute and again offered fish and also services. The services were declined and the 2 were invited onboard for a drink. ||The captain was knocked unconscious and awoke in a daze sometime later with severe head injuries. He asked the fisherman for help and assistance with transit to the hospital. The fisherman asked for money. When the captain went below to get his wallet, he found that it had been emptied of all cash and credit cards, and realized he had been robbed. Also missing were 2 phones and a tablet. He asked the two to leave, and they departed.||The captain managed to take his boat to Chaguaramas late that night and received assistance from other cruisers. He was taken immediately to the hospital and admitted. ||After discharge he returned to his yacht and a full report was made to the police, and later to his consulate. ||Police have identified a suspect but have not been successful in locating/apprehending the man. He is also suspected in another incident of theft, see CSSN ALERT! 3088. ||CSSN will as a matter of policy update this report if new information from the police is made available.

August 2, 2023

3036 – Assault in Saint Lucia – Anse Canaries

Incident Date: 2023-06-13 at 00:05

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: Cash, tablet, phone, VHF radios, all clothing and food, chartplotter and GPS, epoxy resin and hardener, earphones, backpack, dinghy and 9.8HP Tohastu

Secured: Not Locked

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: UPDATED REPORT : The victim has provided additional detail. This report replaces the original secondhand report previously published.||A singlehander anchored in Anse Canaries between 1700-1800HRS, there were no other yachts in the anchorage. He was awakened with a machete to his throat just after midnight. Three(3) young men had arrived by kayak and boarded the unlocked yacht. The captain complied with their demands, was threatened with death and then tied up by one of the 2 masked men. Over the course of 2 hours the men stole cash, electronics, all food and clothing and then departed in the yachts dinghy with the kayak in tow. The captain sustained minor injuries but was able to untie himself. ||The thieves had left behind the trackable Garmin In-Reach which the captain used to contact and inform family members, who then contacted Interpol who then engaged the local St. Lucia marine police. The yacht departed immediately but was met many miles offshore sometime later by the marine police. A verbal report was made and the yacht continued to its next port. A full report was made with local officials on arrival and St. Lucian officials later that day. St. Lucian officials reported that they had recovered the dinghy/outboard ashore. An investigation was opened by St. Lucia police, and efforts are underway to get the dinghy/outboard back to the owner. || CSSN will update this report if authorities make progress with arrest/prosecution. ||NOTE: This is not the first recent instance of armed robbery in this bay, or nearby in the Soufriere/Pitons area. No arrests have been made in any of the earlier cases. Utilize the CSSN archives and Zoom-Tap maps for 2022 to easily review those 5 incidents.

June 13, 2023

3086 – Assault in Colombia – Isla Tortuguilla

Incident Date: 2023-05-19 at 22:00

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: Cell phones, laptops, outboard and small items.

Secured: Does not apply

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: A yacht transiting from Panama to Cartagena anchored late in the day to overnight at Isla Tortuguilla. There were no other boats anchored there. They closed up and locked the boat for the night. At 2200HRs several men armed with automatic weapons arrived in an open boat with 40HP outboard and boarded. ||The captain reluctantly opened up and the men ransacked the yacht. They collected valuables and then with a blast of gunfire forced all of the crew into the open boat and took them ashore where they were held hostage at gunpoint overnight. The crew was treated roughly but there were no physical injuries. The youngest crew member was handcuffed and then "interviewed" by the leader. The thieves seemed to think the crew was involved in drug smuggling, but found no drugs. They made it clear visitors were not welcome.||The next morning, the thieves returned the hostages to the yacht and released them, and stole the outboard engine. ||The crew departed and plans to make a report to their consular officials.

May 19, 2023

3018 – Assault in Honduras – Roatan – Coxen Hole

Incident Date: 2023-04-18 at 02:30

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: Cash, backpack, cellphone

Secured: Not Locked

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: A yacht anchored alone in Coxen Hole. On the second night at 0230HRS two masked and armed men boarded through the lit cockpit/open companionway. They proceeded to tie the crew at gunpoint with braided shoelaces they had brought with them and covered their victim’s face with a tshirt. They ransacked the forward cabin briefly and took cash, a phone and a backpack they had emptied. The boarders spoke a non-Spanish local language and were onboard for only 3-5 minutes before leaving the scene with their accomplices in a panga. The crew was not injured. ||A police report was made. No forensics were collected.||The yacht departed later the same day.

April 18, 2023

3011 – Assault in Panama – Portobello

Incident Date: 2023-03-26 at 00:15

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: nothing of value

Secured: Not Locked

Source Type: 1st Hand Report

Incident Details: PRELIMINARY REPORT – A yacht crew was awoken by their dog when they were boarded by 2 men armed with guns and knives. A fight ensued, and the 3 crew sustained numerous cuts and bruises. The thieves departed without anything of value. A VHF call for assistance was made, with no response. The local police were called but were slow to respond. No further details are currently available.||CSSN NOTE: We will update this report when victims are able to make a firsthand report.||UPDATED REPORT :||This report has been updated with the assistance of the victims. ||At 0015HRS on their second night in the bay, the three crew onboard an anchored monohull were boarded and assaulted by 2 masked/hooded men, one armed with a gun. They awoke to their dog barking as the men entered through the unlocked companionway. A vigorous fight ensued in both the salon and cockpit as the crew attempted to defend themselves with their fists and a winch handle. Two times the masked gunman attempted to discharge his semiautomatic handgun at the crew, but it failed to fire. The two ejected cartridges were recovered later, and showed no dents in the casings. || The 2 assailants abandoned the fight and departed when they realized they were outnumbered and unable to successfully fire their semiautomatic handgun. They had been onboard for about 5 minutes. They jumped into the water, leaving behind the kayak they had stolen earlier from another yacht. The bloodied crew was badly shaken and made multiple calls for help on VHF16, but there was no response. They sounded a loud alarm and began yelling from the deck, but no one anchored or ashore made any response to their calls for help. Phone calls to the police went unanswered. They treated their injuries and waited for daylight. ||Later that day a police report was made with assistance ashore from a local business. The crew learned that the police website information was incorrect and had not been updated. The yacht departed to Linton Bay where their yacht was searched the next morning by the police with assistance from Aeronaval. No forensics were collected. That night at 2230HRs a large contingent of officers returned with a court order and again searched the victims yacht very thoroughly for several hours. Again, no forensics were collected. ||A report was made to the captain’s home country consulate, and the victims departed Panama.

March 26, 2023

2976 – Assault in Saint Martin (France) – Marigot Bay

Incident Date: 2023-02-07 at 00:30

Event Type: Assault

Stolen Items: phones and electronics

Secured: N/A

Source Type: 2nd Hand Report

Incident Details: A yacht was boarded by 3 men armed with guns armed at 0030HRS. The family was robbed of phones and electronics. The captain was pistol whipped. ||The police were contacted, but were unable to provide timely transport so the victims used their own dinghy and proceeded immediately to the hospital for medical treatment. A full police report was made. ||No further details are currently available.||CSSN NOTE: If you are a victim , or encounter a victim, please encourage a (firsthand) CSSN report. The online form is available here, and privacy is assured.

February 7, 2023

Tag: Assault Archives