Somali pirates shot and killed four American hostages in a violent end to the hijacking of a yacht over the weekend, U.S. officials said on Tuesday.
Jean and Scott Adam, who owned the boat, and Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle, a Seattle couple who were together with the Adams, were found dead from gunshot wounds aboard the Adams’ Quest vessel by U.S. forces early Tuesday morning.
A special operations reaction force boarded the Quest after hearing gunfire and “discovered all four hostages had been shot by their captors,” a U.S. Central Command statement said.
Additionally, two pirates were killed by U.S. forces, two were found dead prior to the engagement, and 13 pirates were detained. A total of 19 pirates were believed to be involved in the hijacking of the Quest.
“We express our deepest condolences for the innocent lives callously lost aboard the Quest,” General James N. Mattis, U.S. Central Command Commander, said in a statement.
Four Navy warships were following the Quest, which was hijacked off the coast of Oman on Friday, and President Barack Obama had authorized the use of force to handle the situation, but all four aboard the Quest perished, according to AFP.
