SEOUL, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- The South Korean Supreme Court will make the final decision on the long prison terms given five Somali pirates, officials said Saturday.
The five were tried in South Korea earlier this year. They were arrested in January by South Korean special forces who retook the Samho Jewelry after it was hijacked in the Arabian Sea, killing eight of the pirates.
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The Somalis have appealed the sentences handed down after their trial in Busan, the Samho Jewelry's home port, Yonhap News Agency reported.
Mahomed Arai, 23, who was convicted of shooting the ship's captain, received a life sentence while the others got terms of 12 to 15 years. The captain, Seok Hae-kyun, is being treated in a rehabilitation hospital.
