Satellite Image Shows Initial Venezuelan Tanker Seized by American Authorities is Currently Near Texas.
American agents roped onto the deck of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Orbital data and ship tracking data has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the first vessel seized by the United States for allegedly carrying sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is now positioned near of Texas.
Vantor satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the tanker is near Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking data from a maritime data service currently places the Skipper about 50 miles offshore.
The Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by several nations. When it was seized, it was falsely sailing under the ensign of the nation of Guyana.
This seizure was succeeded by the interception of a second oil vessel, the Centuries. This ship – unlike the first vessel – was not yet under sanctions when it was brought under American control.
American agencies are currently targeting a third such ship, which has been named by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1. The US President said recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the maritime monitoring group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an typical pace of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel remaining unless her velocity decreases”.
The group further stated the vessel is “probably heading south-east towards the South African coast”.
