Five Chinese crew members are being hospitalized after a pirate attack on a general cargo vessel, the News Agency of Nigeria reported on Monday night.

The attack occurred on Sunday at about 10:00 pm in Lagos, Joseph Babatunde, Agency Manager of GMT Shipping Nigeria Ltd, was quoted as saying by News Agency of Nigeria.

Babatunde said that five armed pirates in a speed boat attacked the ship, ransacked it and beat up everybody in the vessel.

He said the pirates shot the master of the vessel in the leg while the representative of the ship owner was shot in the chest and neck.

Babatunde said the pirates collected money from the crew and disembarked immediately.

A source in the Harbour Department of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) confirmed the attack and said the vessel had been anchored at berth 9 in Apapa port.

"We cannot get any report yet from the vessel's captain and the other crew members as they were seriously injured," a source who pleaded anonymity said.

Officials at the Chinese embassy in Abuja and consulate general in Lagos had not been informed about the incident as Xinhua called them separately Monday night.