By Leon SuseranIt has been one week since armed pirates attacked two fishing vessels off the coast of Guyana and threw two fishermen overboard while kidnapping a third.While the families of the missing fishermen have given up expectation of their survival, hope grows dimmer that even their bodies will be recovered. Rajin ‘Keeshan’ Ramsammy, 23, and Rakesh ‘Babso’ Persaud, 39, of Clifton Settlement, Tain, Port Mourant were both tied up and thrown overboard by five masked pirates armed with cutlasses, last Tuesday, during a brazen 11:00 hrs attack at sea.Their colleague Eon ‘Bucky’ Benn, 36, of Number 67 Village,China Jerseys Free Shipping, Corentyne, was taken away after the river heist, and he has not been heard from since. Benn lived with a relative at Number 67 Village.Clockwise from top left: Rajin ‘Keeshan’ Ramsammy; Eon ‘Bucky’ Benn; Rakesh ‘Babso’ Persaud and survivor, captain Derick MalchandThe captain of their boat ‘Tara 1’, Derick Malchand, 33, of Number 68 Village, related what transpired.Shortly after anchoring at a place called ‘Coopanam’ in the Corentyne River (in the vicinity of Coronie, Suriname), “we see a boat coming like a normal fishing boat.” He stated that as the boat got closer, the five men started to put on their masks “and they jumped in our boat and took me and tied me and threw a sponge on me (so he could not have seen what was taking place) and started to tie the workmen, and threw two of the boys overboard.”The other fishermen were terrorized “and they tell me I got to find all the boats (in the river) or they will kill me.” They destroyed the engine and emptied ‘Tara 1’ of approximately $180,000 worth of trout,Wholesale NFL Jerseys China, snapper and kingfish; $37,000 in groceries; $17,NFL Jerseys Wholesale,000 in vegetables and $140,000 worth in cooking gas.Afraid for his life, he submitted to the pirates’ demands and drove for quite some time until they came upon another group of fishermen in the ‘Omi 5’. “They took those men with their captain ‘Junior’ and put them in ‘Tara 1’ and then they left in their own boat.”The pirates then left Malchand all by himself in ‘Omi 5’ who then recalled that he drifted in the river until 09:00 hrs the following day. He was rescued by another boat of Number 65 Village after which they made a report to the Surinamese police in Coronie.“I went in there and made my report and they (the police) took boats and were searching [for the men].”The crewmembers Karran Singh, 22,Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping, of Clifton Settlement,Wholesale China Jerseys, Port Mourant; Ravin and Ravi of Number 65 Village; Avanada Rampersaud, 46, of Number 79 Village; and Adolphus Holder, 30,Cheap NFL Jerseys, of Number 65 Village, were later rescued. The five men belonging to the ‘Omi 5’ were also beaten. The pirates also escaped with fish and fish glue as well as fuel from that boat.Recovery effortsMalchand added that after two bodies were spotted by fishermen in the river last Saturday, he and a few others left immediately to conduct a search, but when they arrived they did not see anything.Malchand highly believes that Benn might be alive.“I don’t believe they would kill he…No…I don’t know what they would do with him when they finish with him.”He said, too, that some of the pirates spoke Dutch while others spoke English. This latest incident was Malchand’s sixth hijacking in a short period, but he still finds the courage to return to the seas.“I don’t believe I will go back though; this was the last time,” he asserted.Meanwhile, Suroj Persaud, Ramsammy’s mother, spoke to this newspaper from her hammock. She was not feeling too well. It was her second son whom had been killed at sea by pirates. Just three years ago, she lost an 18-year-old son, Ravi. His bloated body was found a few days after being thrown overboard. Suroj noted that her son and Persaud left home two Saturdays ago for the trip and were supposed to spend twelve days at sea.One of the survivors, Karran Singh, stated that it was his first trip at sea for fishing. He recalled the men lashing him with the cutlasses, tying him up and then throwing him into the river. However, after struggling he managed to get back to the boat. His other colleagues were not so lucky.