Somali pirates released the cargo ship MV Filitsa on Monday after a ransom was delivered and the crew are safe, a regional maritime official and pirate sources said.
A pirate on board the vessel told Reuters earlier they were expecting to receive $3 million for the Marshall Islands-flagged 23,709 dwt cargo ship, which was seized in November. The crew included three Greek officers and the rest were Filipinos.
Helicopters dropped the agreed ransom aboard the vessel, Andrew Mwangura of the Kenya-based East African Seafarers Assistance Programme said. "She is now steaming out to safe waters. All crew members are said to be safe," he added.
"We took the money from the ship ... The ship started sailing and there's navy ships guarding it," said pirate Rage, adding the pirates were heading towards land on their own sailing boat to the pirate hideout of Hobyo.
The ship had been heading from Kuwait to Durban, South Africa, when it was attacked 500 miles northeast of the Seychelles.
As ransoms paid to Somali pirates spiral higher, competition between rival gangs has been growing. A dispute in January over the biggest ever payoff to Somali pirates for a Greek-flagged oil tanker sparked gun battles at sea and on land.