The Boracay. Photo: Vessel Finder
French special forces have detained an oil tanker sailing under the flag of Benin, which they believe to be part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” and the possible source of a series of rogue drone flights that disrupted air traffic and ramped up tensions in Denmark last week, France24 reported on Wednesday.
The Boracay, which was detained on 27 September in the English Channel, left the port of Primorsk, in Russia’s northwestern Leningrad region, bound for India on 20 September, according to MarineTraffic, a site that tracks global shipping.
Having rounded Denmark and entered the North Sea, the tanker was followed by a French warship after it passed northwestern France, according to Reuters.
The Prosecutor’s Office in the northwestern French city of Brest has opened an investigation into whether the tanker violated maritime law and over its suspected links to Russia’s “shadow fleet”, France24 continued.
A group of tankers used to bypass international sanctions on Russian oil and petroleum product exports, the vessels in Russia’s shadow fleet are generally owned by anonymous shell companies registered in third countries that provide flags of convenience.
An investigation was opened after the Boracay’s crew failed to provide details of the vessel’s ownership and refused to cooperate with French law enforcement agencies. As well as the tanker itself, the ship’s captain and first mate were both detained, according to France24.
The European Union, which sanctioned the ship in February, said the tanker had been carrying Russian oil and petroleum products “while practising irregular and high-risk shipping practices”, according to Reuters.
Mark Douglas, an analyst with Starboard Maritime Intelligence, told independent investigative outlet The Insider that this was the first time the French authorities had detained a vessel in such circumstances, adding that the same vessel, then going by the name Kiwala, had been detained for two weeks in Estonia in April while flying the flag of Djibouti.
According to AFP, the Boracay was in Danish waters from 22 to 25 September, dates that correspond to a series of unidentified drones being spotted flying over the country, and which even forced Copenhagen’s airport to temporarily suspend its operations. The specialist title Lloyd’s List said that investigators would check the Boracay to see if it was the source of the unidentified drones.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday confirmed that law enforcement agencies were investigating the ship for “serious offences”, France24 continued, though he provided no further details.
