The Security Service of Ukraine has detained and seized a foreign vessel that was part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” and illegally transported Ukrainian agricultural products from occupied Crimea. The crew consisted of 17 citizens of several Middle Eastern countries.
The Security Service of Ukraine has reported the detention of a foreign cargo ship in the Odesa commercial port. According to the SBU, the vessel was part of the Russian “shadow fleet” and used for illegal exports of Ukrainian agricultural products from temporarily occupied Crimea. The ship’s owner was under National Security and Defense Council sanctions and repeatedly changed the vessel’s name and nominal beneficiaries from third countries to circumvent restrictions.
The cargo vessel entered Odesa under the flag of an African state to collect a shipment of steel pipes. Investigators established that before the full-scale invasion, the ship had entered Sevastopol at least seven times, where it engaged in illegal exports of agricultural products in Russia’s interests.
In January 2021, the vessel illicitly transported nearly 7,000 tonnes of Ukrainian grain from Crimea to North Africa. At the time of the detention, 17 people were on board — the captain and crew members who are citizens of several Middle Eastern countries.
During searches, SBU officers found voyage plans, pilotage charts, maps, and radio communication logs containing evidence of illegal entry into ports located in temporarily occupied territory.
SBU investigators have opened criminal proceedings under four articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:
- Part 3 of Article 110-2 (financing actions aimed at violent change of the constitutional order or seizure of state power, or altering Ukraine’s borders);
- Article 111 (state treason);
- Article 291 (violation of transport safety rules);
- Parts 2 and 3 of Article 332-1 (violation of the procedure for entering and leaving temporarily occupied territory).
Based on SBU materials, the vessel has been seized for further transfer to ARMA — Ukraine’s National Agency for tracing, seizing, and managing assets obtained from corruption and other crimes.