Larisa Kozova15:57, 25.04.25

The dry cargo ship was detained while passing through the Danube waters.

A foreign vessel belonging to the Russian “shadow” fleet was detained in the internal waters of Ukraine , carrying grain stolen from the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhia and Kherson regions. According to the SBU department in the Odessa region , this dry cargo ship helped the occupiers steal Ukrainian agricultural products from the temporarily occupied regions.

“The detention took place as a result of a special operation by the SBU and the State Border Guard Service in the internal waters of the Black Sea area of ​​Ukraine,” the report says.

It was established that the ship was part of the Russian Federation’s “shadow” fleet, which the Kremlin uses to sell looted Ukrainian grain to third countries.

According to the case materials, at the end of 2024, the dry cargo ship exported 5,000 tons of wheat from the port of Sevastopol, which was stolen in the temporarily occupied territory of southern Ukraine. In order to hide the crimes of the occupiers, the vessel carried out an illegal raid under the flag of one of the Asian countries.

It is noted that during the search of the vessel, documents, navigation equipment, and other physical evidence were discovered that confirm the facts of the looting.

The SBU clarified that the dry cargo ship has been arrested and the crew has been detained. Investigative actions are currently underway to establish all the circumstances of the crimes and bring the perpetrators to justice.

It is specified that the comprehensive measures were carried out by the SBU officers in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the Odessa region together with the maritime protection units of the State Border Guard Service and the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine under the procedural guidance of the Prosecutor’s Office in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol.

As specified by the State Border Service of Ukraine , the vessel, which was detained in the internal waters of the Black Sea, was involved in the illegal transportation of Ukrainian agricultural products to third countries, exported from the temporarily occupied part of southern Ukraine.

“The vessel sailed under the flag of one of the Asian states in order to mask the origin of the cargo. This method of action is typical of the so-called “shadow fleet” of the Russian Federation, which is used for the illegal export of Ukrainian resources,” the border guards explained.

According to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine , the agricultural products in question were likely seized by the occupiers in the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.

“In April 2025, after loading in the port of Moldova, the vessel followed the territorial waters of Ukraine. While passing through the waters of the Danube River, the dry cargo ship was detained by law enforcement agencies,” the office added. 

It is also clarified that this foreign vessel was previously arrested for violating the procedure for entering and leaving the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine, with the aim of causing harm to the interests of the state (Part 2 of Article 332-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). 

A tanker belonging to the Russian “shadow” fleet was detained in Estonia – what is known

Recall, in April, the Estonian Defense Forces, for the first time since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine , detained a tanker of the Russian “shadow” fleet in the Baltic Sea . The Commander of the Estonian Navy, Commodore Ivo Värk, said that this happened in the Gulf of Finland, the oil tanker Kiwala, which arrived from the Indian port of Sikka and was heading east to the port of Ust-Luga in Russia, was detained.

(C)UNIAN 2025