Monday 10 January 2011
By Bronwyn Gerretsen
 Peter Eldridge, skipper of the yacht Choizil, has described his ordeal at the hands of Somali pirates who seized his yacht and kidnapped his crewmates, Bruno Pelizzari and Deborah Calitz, to Dutch police and court officials. Pcture: Marie Strachan |
Eldridge, skipper of the yacht, Choizil, was confronted by AK47-wielding pirates off the Tanzanian coast on October 26. He, along with Durban couple Bruno Pelizzari and Deborah Calitz, were held hostage for 13 days before the yacht ran aground. Eldridge was left on the yacht after he refused to disembark, but Pelizzari and Calitz were taken hostage. Their whereabouts are still unknown, although it is suspected that they are being held on the Somali mainland.
Five suspected Somali pirates – believed to be among those who hijacked Eldridge – were arrested and will stand trial in the Netherlands.
Eldridge was flown to the Netherlands last week to testify.
“I then went before the magistrate and said virtually the same things, and was then asked questions by the lawyers.”
Eldridge said he did not believe that he would have to return to the Netherlands for the trial. He said that giving evidence there and knowing that some of the men had been arrested had not helped him in dealing with the trauma of the incident.
“It is probably something I will never get over… The most important thing now is to get Bruno and Debbie back safely,” he said. - The Mercury
Source: IOL news