Satellite Image Reveals First Venezuela-Linked Tanker Confiscated by US is Currently Near the Texas Coast.
US agents roped onto the vessel of the tanker Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and vessel monitoring information has confirmed that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel seized by the United States for reportedly carrying sanctioned oil from the Venezuelan regime – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the tanker is in the vicinity of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking feeds from MarineTraffic presently places the vessel about 50 miles from the coast.
The Skipper was seized by US authorities on 10 December and has been sanctioned by several governments. At the time it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the flag of Guyana.
This seizure was followed by the interception of a another tanker, the Centuries. This ship – unlike the Skipper – was not under sanctions when it was brought under American control.
American agencies are now pursuing a third such ship, which has been named by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump stated yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on X, the TankerTrackers group said the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an typical pace of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel left unless her velocity decreases”.
The group added the tanker is “likely heading south-east towards the South African coast”.
