Officials: FBI launches criminal piracy probe

US officials say the FBI has begun a criminal investigation into the Somali pirates who hijacked a US Ship and are holding its captain hostage. Two officials said the bureau's New York office is handling the case. That office oversees investigations involving US citizens in Africa.

The Navy is in a standoff with the pirates hundreds of miles off Somalia's Indian Ocean coast. They are holding Richard Phillips, captain of the US-flagged Maersk Alabama, in a lifeboat with US Ships nearby.

Depending on how the standoff plays out, it could lead to US charges against the pirates. That's something that Attorney General Eric Holder says has not happened in about 100 years. (AP)