Tanker crew face sabotage claim over damage to undersea cables

Finnish authorities have filed charges against members of the crew of an oil tanker suspected of damaging five undersea cables by dragging its anchor between Finland and Estonia.

- Miranda Bryant

Finland's deputy prosecutor general's office said yesterday it had filed charges of aggravated sabotage and aggravated interference with telecommunications against the captain and first and second officers of the Eagle S. The Cook Islands-registered tanker is understood to be part of Russia's "shadow fleet" - comprising vessels that sail under foreign flags to evade sanctions.

The ship was carrying oil from Ust-Luga in Russia across the Gulf of Finland when, prosecutors allege, it dragged its anchor along the seabed for about 90km (56 miles) in December 2024. The incident was one of several suspected hybrid attacks on telecommunications services in the Nordic region at the end of last year, prompting accusations of infrastructure sabotage against Russia.