Pirates who attacked a yacht in the Gulf of Aden killed its French skipper before abandoning it, a source close to the family said yesterday, the day after the dead man’s wife was found unharmed.
Christian and Evelyne Colombo’s family was informed overnight that the 55-year-old was killed during the attack and his body thrown overboard before their catamaran was found abandoned on Thursday, the same source said.
A German warship found the couple’s catamaran, the Tribal Kat, adrift in waters off Yemen on Thursday after it broadcast a mayday appeal for help.
There were signs of struggle, including bullet holes and blood stains, and no one was on board, prompting commanders from the EU’s anti-piracy naval task force Atalanta to launch an air and sea search for the attackers.
The French frigate Surcouf then detected a suspect vessel and on Saturday the Spanish warship SPS Galicia chased it down, storming the skiff, rescuing Mr Colombo’s widow and arresting seven alleged pirates.
The Spanish defence ministry said when the skiff ignored an order to stop, the commander of the Galicia ordered his men to open fire. “At that time, it was discovered that they had a hostage on board, who was a woman,” it said.
“The amphibious ship proceeded to intercept the pirate vessel. The operation involved a helicopter and naval warfare team, who fired on the engine of the boat, to disable it.”
A spokesman for Operation Atalanta, Commander Harrie Harrison, declined to confirm the death, saying they were waiting to be briefed by Evelyne Colombo.
“He is missing,” Mr Harrison said. “We believe he may have died during the assault but we are waiting for the lady to brief us.”
An Atalanta statement said however that: “The other crew member is believed to have been killed when the suspects boarded the yacht.”
A source close to the search said authorities were trying to find the dead skipper’s body.
Christian Colombo was a former French navy crewman and the couple were experienced sailors who wanted to see the world and were passing through the Gulf of Aden en route for the Indian Ocean and eventually Thailand.
“They knew they were taking a risk and everyone advised them not to go,” a relative said on Saturday. One of the couple’s daughters, Emilie, posted a message of concern on the blog they were keeping of their high seas adventure.
“The last I heard from Christian was around a month ago. He was south of Egypt and heading for Malaysia,” said the skipper’s friend Gerard Navarin, who once helped him set a catamaran speed record off Toulon.