A gang boarded an unnamed Singapore-owned vessel in the port of Lagos, Nigeria, on Tuesday night and sailed the ship into the open sea, the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre said.

The 23 crew managed to lock themselves in a citadel before the pirates got control of the ship.

No further details on the name or whereabouts of the vessel are currently available.

It is the third tanker to be taken by pirates in the region in the space of little more than a fortnight.

The 75,000-dwt Restis controlled Energy Centurion (built 2008) was hijacked last Tuesday off the coast of Togo.

The gang pilfered it of 3,000 tonnes of Gasoil, jewellery and money from the crew before releasing it on Thursday.

They left the 24 crew unharmed before escaping in one of the ship's lifeboats.

Days earlier Norbulk revealed that its 7,400-dwt Anuket Emerald (built 2008) had been captured by pirates.

Once again the vessel's cargo was raided before the vessel and crew were released.

Source: Jason O'Connel, Tradewinds