Binjiang Police Affairs
Chapter 247 - 183 The Troubles of the Shipping Company_3

Chapter 247: Chapter 183 The Troubles of the Shipping Company_3

"The gangsters who extorted us used cargo transportation as a cover. They formed a fleet from individual boats and were affiliated with a certain unit in the area, specifically targeting our state-owned shipping company fleets on the canal."

Xu Sanye picked up a pen, opened his notebook, and asked coldly, "How exactly were they causing you trouble?"

"In January this year, while our fleet was passing through Suqian, we were traveling in the same direction as a local ’Tiger Team’. They deliberately deviated from the waterway and collided with our fleet. Even though we took evasive actions, our boats were too close and still collided."

Manager Jiang took a deep breath and continued, "Their only boat’s railing got somewhat deformed, and it was entirely the fault of their on-duty pilot, but without distinguishing right from wrong, about a dozen of them swarmed over. Firstly, they forcibly took a cable worth over a thousand yuan, then proceeded to the tugboat’s cockpit, and threatened and intimidated Captain Fan, demanding we compensate thirty thousand."

"Did you pay?" pursued Xu Sanye.

Captain Fan raised his head and said helplessly, "They outnumbered us. We didn’t dare to report it nor delay the voyage. We had no choice but to negotiate and eventually paid six thousand."

"Besides the Grand Canal, Suqian also has lakes, is economically underdeveloped, and the police are poorer than the Linghai Police, probably having only a few contract police officers and Cooperative Defense Team members. It’s normal for them to be unable to handle water incidents."

"Moreover, the security management along the canal is rather chaotic. One side of the river belongs to this county, the opposite belongs to another, and several counties or even cities meet at the border, making it unclear who actually has jurisdiction."

Xu Sanye realized they were facing serious troubles and asked softly, "Is there more?"

"There is."

Manager Jiang handed out a circle of cigarettes, lit one, and continued, "In February, when our fleet went to Xuzhou to fetch coal, after entering Pizhou territory, the ’Tiger Team’ intentionally parked their anchor in the main waterway. We couldn’t avoid in time and accidentally collided.

There was no damage to their boat, but crew members from their boat and other nearby individual boat crews, about a dozen people, came over without discrimination. They beat several crew members, including Captain Fan, and then demanded compensation for what they called ’potential losses’ of twenty thousand yuan, otherwise they wouldn’t let us leave."

Xu Sanye asked with a grim face, "Did you pay?

"They outnumbered us, our people were injured, and since our fleet had to pass through there every month, our company’s Deputy Manager Old Zhang was also on board at the time. He had no option but to pay twenty thousand."

"Continue."

...

Manager Jiang went on infuriatingly, "Every time we fetched coal, we were extorted two or even three to four times, sometimes the crew members were even beaten up."

"The most severe incident was last month. When their fully loaded fleet of over three thousand tons of coal was navigating within Pizhou territory, they were followed by an individual boat carrying an overloaded cargo of one hundred and thirty tons.

Due to the high density of boats in that stretch of river, the shipping company’s fleet reduced speed for navigation, while the trailing individual boat continued at its original speed.

Because of the severe overloading and excessive speed, its bow hit the stern of the last barge in the shipping company’s fleet.

The individual boat sank!

Although the responsibility for the accident should entirely be attributed to the individual boat, the owner of the sunken boat and other nearby individual owners immediately came over, about seven or eight people, first beating Captain Fan, then demanding compensation for the loss of boat and cargo.

Captain Fan, unwilling to endure anymore, had a crew member secretly report to the local Port Supervision after docking, seeking help from local law enforcement officers to deal with the accident.

But those people relied on local forces for support, did not heed the law enforcement officers, nor did they release the ship.

Involving marine traffic accidents, it was useless to call the police.

Manager Jiang rushed over that night, connected with every relevant local department he could find through various channels, but to no avail. Eventually, he compensated one hundred and fifty thousand, and the fleet was finally allowed to return.

Each trip resulted in losses, no matter how much money the shipping company had, it wouldn’t be enough to cover the compensations.

Deputy County Magistrate Gu crushed out his cigarette butt and said solemnly, "Comrade Sanye, I know this isn’t your responsibility, but now the shipping company is significantly losing money, and dares not and cannot go to Xuzhou to fetch coal anymore.

But if we truly stop fetching coal, the power plants will run out of coal, leading to power outages. Tens of companies in the county will have no coal for their production.

Hyperbolically speaking, even the workers of several textile factories won’t be able to take a shower after work, because the enterprises use boilers for heating water, and without coal, you can’t fire boilers."

Xu Sanye didn’t express his opinion, but asked in a low voice, "Manager Jiang, Captain Fan, does the extortion mainly occur between the Si Yang to Pizhou section?"

Manager Jiang quickly replied, "Yes, the ’Tiger Team’ mainly operates in that area. They are blatant and reckless."

"One could tackle such incidents on the Yangtze River by coordinating with the Water Police Station.

Even if it’s not in the Binjiang Waters, Director Yu can report to the superiors, uniting the police water stations along the Yanjiang for action.

However, every occasion of extortion happens on the Grand Canal, beyond what Xu Sanye, no matter how capable, can’t reach.

Commissioner Ding, who had been silent, spoke up, "Deputy County Chief Gu, there are many coal-carrying boats on the river, including sea vessels transporting coal from the north, and even ocean freighters importing foreign coal. I’ve heard that the price is not pricier than the coal we haul back from Xuzhou; the quality is even better."

"Are you suggesting to stop fetching it and shift to buying from other places?"

"This might be the best immediate solution."

Deputy County Magistrate Gu looked around at everyone, helplessly saying, "Comrades, I know this is a permanent solution, but it doesn’t just involve the shipping company, it also concerns our Linghai mines in Xuzhou. If we don’t buy coal we mine ourselves, what about the miners, who will pay their wages?"