Sailors from Odesa and Kherson regions trapped on Russian tanker: details of the story

In early January, the United States seized a sanctioned tanker that had changed its flag to Russian while underway. Most of the Ukrainians on board were from Odesa and Kherson regions.

The sailors told Suspilne about how the Americans detained the vessel, which was heading to Venezuela for oil, as well as about the company that hired them.

The journalists found 12 Ukrainians out of the 28-member crew and talked to several of them. They told how they got on the ship and about the company that hired the crew. The company has ties to a former Odesa deputy who holds a Russian passport.

The crew and the tanker's route

The vessel was initially flying the flag of Guyana, was named "Bella 1" and was heading to Latin America without specifying a specific port. The crew consisted of 28 people: two Russians, three Indians, six Georgians (including the captain) and 17 Ukrainians, mostly from Odesa and Kherson regions, with a sailor from Kyiv.

According to the sailors, they did not know that the ship was headed to Venezuela. Initially, the route was from Sri Lanka to Oman, where the ship was anchored for several weeks. Later, the operator reported that the vessel was heading to Curacao (Netherlands), about 80 km from the Venezuelan coast. At the time, the tanker was empty.

The turning point was the change of flag from Guyana to Russia during the pursuit by the US Coast Guard. According to the UN convention, the flag cannot be changed on the high seas, but Bella 1 did it in the middle of the Atlantic.

Crew resistance and the US chase

When the crew realized that the Russian-flagged vessel was headed for Venezuela, 23 of the 28 crew members signed a statement requesting that the crew be replaced due to life-threatening and legal risks.

The younger crew members, according to the sailors, did not know what was happening at first, as the Internet was turned off on the ship, and only the top of the crew saw the US chase. The sailors switched the engine room to automatic control, minimizing human intervention.

On January 7, the US landing party boarded the ship under the name Marinera. The crew was held in the dining room, sleeping on the floor. Medical examinations and phone checks went smoothly.

After the inspection, the US released almost all of the Ukrainian sailors, leaving only the captain and a senior assistant in custody. The captain is Avtandil Kalandadze, a Georgian from Batumi, with his wife and minor child in the United States. The senior assistant is 46-year-old Ukrainian Oleksandr Raskovsky from Odesa. They were both transferred to the United States, where they were charged with transporting oil in violation of the sanctions regime.

The Ukrainian sailors, who have been released, do not plan to return home for fear of prosecution and possible treason charges.

Company and ties to the former MP

The sailors were recruited by CWave. The company's vacancies, as well as those of the related Zolos Shipping, are posted on its websites and in Telegram. The companies have offices in Chisinau and are probably related.

According to media reports, both companies are linked to former Odesa MP Viktor Baransky, a Russian citizen and member of the banned OPFL, who is on the wanted list. A Moldovan relative of the ex-deputy founded Zolos Shipping, which recruits crews for sanctioned vessels.

"Marinera is an old ship in poor technical condition. The fire system and safety equipment were partially operational. The sailors constantly maintained the technical condition of the vessel, as it required non-stop maintenance.

According to Ukrainian seafarers, they choose to work on such vessels because of the shortage of offers after the outbreak of a full-scale war and the high technical skills of Ukrainians.

The vessel's sanctioned history

The media linked ex-MP Baransky to the export of sanctioned oil because of his family ties to the Moldovan company Zoloshiping. The company was founded by Alina Samson, his mother's niece, who recruits crews for ships. According to journalists, Zoloshiping is linked to both Moldovan shadow fleet nominees and Russian companies that employ sailors. It is difficult to trace the former MP's direct connections, as his companies are registered offshore, in particular in the Virgin Islands.

Russia's shadow fleet often consists of old, faulty vessels that change names and flags, with offshore companies and "shell companies" between the owners. Companies associated with Baransky buy such vessels, and crews are formed from Ukrainians and Russians. For example, the tanker Marinera belonged to a Panamanian-Turkish company and was transporting Iranian oil under US sanctions in 2024. After the harassment, the vessel changed ownership to the Russian company Burivest Marine and was granted the right to fly the Russian flag.

In late December, the US Coast Guard tried to detain the Panamanian-flagged tanker Bella 1 (Marinera) in the Caribbean Sea, which Washington claimed was headed for Venezuela. The vessel was sanctioned for transporting sanctioned oil.

Анна Бальчінос