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updated 41 minutes ago

Pirates Hijack Container Ship

  • Story Highlights
  • NEW: Modern Pirates now the menace of the Atlantic
  • NEW: High-speed power boats now the transport of choice
  • NEW: Ship has already docked in the port of Eyl
  • Pirates have offloaded some of the more valuable cargo

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(CNN) -- Pirates have hijacked one of the world's largest container ships, the Emma Maersk, today. The 11,200 TEU (twenty foot equivalent units) container ship is estimated to be carrying in excess of $200 million in cargo. The ship was captured approximately 150 miles off the Somalian coast, in what experts are saying was a precision-planned attack, using the high-powered speed boats which are now the de-facto transport of the modern Somali pirate.

The Emma Maersk unloading her valuable cargo in Singapore

The Emma Maersk unloading her valuable cargo in Singapore.

The pirates are believed to number at least 25, and all crew have been captured and are being held prisoner. Believing that the cargo could contain many valuable items the ship has already docked in the notorious pirate port of Eyl in Somalia.

According to the shipping company Maersk, included among the thousands of containers on board are millions of toys due to arrive in Western Europe for the festive season. The pirates are said to have little interest in this cargo, and have even resorted to burning discarding the contents of many of these containers as they are opened..

Among the more valuable containers on board are a large shipment of Japanese export cars destined for the discerning Western European market. High performance vehicles such as Toyota's Supra, Honda's NSX, Nissan's Skyline GTR and Subaru's Impreza STI are all amongst the shipment.

Several of these high-performance vehicles have already been offloaded, and are providing these modern-day pirates with some new transport alternatives around the port town of Eyl.

Our CNN correspondent Bobby Ess, located undercover in Eyl, has managed to take several pictures of these pirates already parading around town in one of the souped-up vehicles.

Pictured below is a late 90's Toyota Supra, believed to be on it's way from Japan as a private import to a discerning pseudo-Portu-Ingles investor in the West Midlands region of the UK.. This picture was taken by our reporter just as it was offloaded from the Emma Maersk..

A stock Toyota Supra Turbo, before the pirates modded her..

A 90's Supra Twin Turbo just offloaded in Eyl.

The rebels posing with their prize..

Posing with their prize on Main Street, Eyl.

The pirates, then desperate to add some more valuable attributes to what was basically a two-door, two seater, did a bit of dodgeball and made some useful modifications..

Now a UTE, modified from the b-pillar rearward..  new shocks required, and some artillery storage in the 2nd row

Now a UTE, modified from the b-pillar rearward.. new shocks required, and some artillery storage in the 2nd row. With a twin-shot Ukrainian-sourced plutonium tip sidewinder launcher (!)

It's not known if the pirates have made any demands on the no doubt worried owner-to-be, but I'm sure they would be asking for some serious ransom money, now that they've made so many massive improvements to what was a pretty basic 90's turbo car..

Quad-shot next up..

Chipped, and with a 4x shot of Nx and 6.5psi of boost, this baby really shifts now....

Stay with CNN.Com for all the latest on what happens next to the Supra!

CNN's Barbara Starr contributed to this report.

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