Satellite Image Shows First Venezuela-Linked Oil Ship Confiscated by American Authorities is Now Near the Texas Coast.
American agents boarding the deck of the tanker Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and ship tracking information has confirmed that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly transporting embargoed crude from the Venezuelan regime – is currently positioned near of Texas.
Vantor satellite imagery dated 21 December indicates the ship is in the vicinity of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic presently places the Skipper about 50 miles offshore.
The Skipper was taken into custody by US authorities on the tenth of December and has been blacklisted by several nations. When it was intercepted, it was falsely flying the ensign of Guyana.
This interception was succeeded by the capture of a second oil vessel, the Centuries. It – unlike the first vessel – was not under sanctions when it was taken into American control.
American agencies are now pursuing a third such ship, which has been identified by the risk management group a risk firm as the Bella 1. President Donald Trump stated recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an typical pace of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel left unless her speed drops”.
The monitoring service added the tanker is “likely heading south-east towards South Africa”.
