A rogue oil tanker intercepted by the US on its way to Russia from Venezuela was yesterday anchored a few miles off Scotland’s coast.
The Marinera was spotted off Burghead near Lossiemouth on the Moray coast.
The tanker, seized last week in an American-led operation in the North Atlantic, was anchored three miles off the coast near to the deep water port and former naval base at Invergordon.
The vessel was flanked by three tug boats and a US coastguard ship and is believed to have been shadowed by a Royal Navy ship on its journey.
Last week’s capture of the Marinera , which the White House described as being part of a ‘Venezuelan shadow fleet ‘ brought to an end a two-week game of cat and mouse as the US chased the ageing tanker from the Caribbean.
The operation took place in the icy waters between Iceland and northern Scotland, as Moscow tried desperately to defend the ship flying under its flag with the menacing presence of a Russian submarine nearby.
US aircraft took launched aircraft from RAF Mildenhall, in Suffolk, and from Wick, in Caithness during the operation. UK military planes involved included a Poseidon MRA1 maritime patrol aircraft.
Onlookers said there was little movement around the ship, which along with the US coastguard vessel did not show up on maritime tracking websites.
One said: ‘It seems to have dropped anchor around three miles out. Whether it’s an issue with space at Invergordon or a mechanical problem is unclear, but there were three tugs heading in that direction for a while and then they just came to a stop.’
Earlier this week, the US released two Russians aboard the Marinera tanker following a Kremlin request.
The remaining crew face potential criminal charges in the US for sailing a sanctioned vessel.
Russia condemned the seizure as ‘outright piracy’ amid warnings from United States Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth that the US military was ‘prepared to continue’ its course of action and that President Trump was ‘not messing around’.
The Marinera, previously known as the Bella 1, claimed a Russian flag in an effort to evade seizure by the US – its fifth flag change in as many years.
The rusting tanker was previously subjected to criminal sanction for carrying Iranian oil. She has also been used to transport Venezuelan oil. The US Coast Guard had a warrant to seize the ship, and had tried to board it in the Caribbean.
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But it dramatically changed course, changed its name, and re-registered as Russian. Her crew also turned off the ship’s transponders so she was invisible on tracking systems.
Defence minister John Healey said that degrading the Russian shadow fleet was a priority for the UK Government, as he announced new sanctions against hundreds of such vessels.
When these were switched back on, the Marinera was located hundreds of miles off Ireland’s west coast. The sighting triggered the joint US-UK operation culminating in last week’s raid.
