The Russian Embassy in Nigeria says seven Russian sailors and a Ukrainian have been kidnapped from a cargo ship in Nigerian waters.
It comes less than three months after three Russians were taken hostage off a ship in Nigerian waters and later freed.
Ship hijackings and crew kidnappings are common off Nigeria’s southern Atlantic coast. Hostages usually are released unharmed after a ransom is paid or crude from oil tankers is stolen.
The Russian Embassy posted messages on social media Wednesday saying Nigerian authorities have been asked to help locate the victims.
It did not give the day of the kidnapping, saying only that the men were taken off the BBC Caribbean, a cargo vessel flagged in Antigua and Barbuda.
Nigeria’s navy and police refused to comment.
