The five Somali pirates, captured during a navy commando raid on a hijacked South Korean freighter in the Arabian Sea last month, have confessed to hijacking the ship and shooting its captain, police said Saturday.

   The five Somali bandits, aged from 19 to 25, have been questioned by maritime police since Jan. 31, when they were airlifted to this southern port city. They are the first pirates operating outside of South Korea to stand trial here.

   The pirates are accused of hijacking the 11,500-ton chemical carrier Samho Jewelry on Jan. 15. Six days after the hijacking, South Korean navy commandos stormed the ship, killing eight pirates and capturing the five.

   The ship's 21 crewmembers were all rescued, but its captain, Seok Hae-kyun, sustained serious gunshot wounds and has since received surgery three times. Doctors say Seok remains in critical but stable condition.

   "The pirates have admitted to most charges, including the hijacking of the ship and the shooting of Capt. Seok," said an official at the Korea Coast Guard in Busan.

   The official said investigators are now wrapping up their probe and will announce the results on Monday.

   Investigators are focusing on finding physical evidence to prove that Arai Mahomed, one of the five pirates, shot the captain, the official said.

   Two South Korean sailors told investigators that they witnessed the 23-year-old Mahomed shot the captain, according to the official.

   The pirates also admitted to other charges of detaining the crew, demanding ransom and attempted murder, the official said on the condition of anonymity.

   Officials said they were looking into whether the pirates pinpointed the Samho Jewelry as their target after learning that a South Korean supertanker was freed after paying a huge ransom. (Yonhap News)