Colombian authorities have arrested the captain of the China-flagged general cargo ship Da Dan Xia, which had been detained at the Port of Cartagena last week while carrying around 100 tonnes of gunpowder and various weaponry without valid documentation, the country’s Attorney General’s office reports.
While searching the 2009-built, 1,200 TEU ship, the police found the weaponry in eight containers which were listed as carrying chemicals and spare parts.
The ship was en route from Cartagena to Baranquilla, with Cuba as its final destination.
The ship had supposedly called at Cartagena to unload a shipment of tubes for an oil company.
Last week, China’s foreign ministry said that the shipment was not illegal, and that the freighter had been involved in a normal trade co-operation. A Chinese official from the ministry said that the ship was carrying regular military supplies to Cuba, and did not violate any international obligations.
World Maritime News Staff