U.S. Military Seizes Sanctioned Venezuela-Linked Oil Tanker After Weeks-Long Pursuit

American forces intercepted and took control of multiple sanctioned oil tankers tied to Venezuela and illicit networks, enforcing a global blockade ordered by President Donald Trump.

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom

U.S. military forces boarded and seized a Venezuela-linked sanctioned oil tanker in the North Atlantic after tracking the vessel for weeks, handing it over to law enforcement without incident as part of an expanded enforcement campaign against illicit oil trafficking, according to U.S. officials.

The operation was confirmed publicly by Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth, who said the interdiction underscored the continued enforcement of sanctions against Venezuelan oil shipments worldwide. “The blockade of sanctioned and illicit Venezuelan oil remains in FULL EFFECT — anywhere in the world,” Hegseth wrote in a statement posted Wednesday morning.

The seizure follows President Donald Trump’s Dec. 16 order establishing a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering or leaving Venezuela. U.S. forces had been pursuing the tanker since last month after it attempted to evade enforcement efforts surrounding Venezuela’s sanctioned oil trade.

U.S. Southern Command announced that the operation occurred before dawn and involved coordination with the Department of Homeland Security. “In a pre-dawn action this morning, the Department of War, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, apprehended a stateless, sanctioned dark fleet motor tanker without incident,” the command said in a statement released Wednesday. The command identified the vessel as M/T Sophia, saying it was operating in international waters and conducting illicit activity in the Caribbean Sea.

“The interdicted vessel, M/T Sophia, was operating in international waters and conducting illicit activities in the Caribbean Sea,” the statement said. “The U.S. Coast Guard is escorting M/T Sophia to the U.S. for final disposition. Through Operation Southern Spear, the Department of War is unwavering in its mission to crush illicit activity in the Western Hemisphere. We will defend our Homeland and restore security and strength across the Americas.”

U.S. European Command separately confirmed the seizure of another merchant vessel, Bella 1, citing violations of U.S. sanctions. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem later disclosed that U.S. forces had taken control of both Bella 1 and the tanker Sophia, saying the vessels were “either last docked in Venezuela or en route to it.”

A U.S. official, speaking to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations, said the Bella 1 was seized and later transferred to law enforcement custody. The ship had been sanctioned by the United States in 2024 for allegedly smuggling cargo on behalf of a company linked to Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist organization.

According to the official, the U.S. Coast Guard attempted to board the Bella 1 in the Caribbean in December as it headed toward Venezuela, but the crew refused and the vessel fled across the Atlantic. During that period, shipping databases showed the ship was renamed Marinera and reflagged to Russia, a move U.S. officials confirmed included the crew painting a Russian flag on the hull.

Open-source maritime tracking data earlier Wednesday placed the vessel between Scotland and Iceland, traveling north through the North Atlantic. U.S. military aircraft flew over the ship, and flight-tracking data showed a Royal Air Force surveillance plane operating in the same area the day before the seizure.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said prior to the operation that it was “following with concern the anomalous situation that has developed around the Russian oil tanker Marinera,” according to a statement carried by Russia’s state-run Tass news agency. The ministry added that “for several days now, a U.S. Coast Guard ship has been following the Marinera, even though our vessel is approximately 4,000 km from the American coast.”

U.S. European Command later confirmed that the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Munro had tracked the ship ahead of the seizure “pursuant to a warrant issued by a U.S. federal court,” stating that the action supported President Trump’s proclamation targeting sanctioned vessels that “threaten the security and stability of the Western Hemisphere.”

The operation drew widespread attention on social media as it unfolded. Fox News correspondent Lucas Tomlinson reported that U.S. forces boarded the tanker “between Iceland and the British isles before Russian warships and a submarine could arrive,” noting that the vessel had previously operated under the name Bella 1 before reflagging to Russia, according to his post dated January 7, 2026. OSINTdefender similarly reported that U.S. forces boarded the Russian-flagged, Iranian-linked tanker Marinera before a naval escort could reach it, in a post shared the same day.

Additional posts circulating online claimed Russian naval assets, including a submarine, were unable to reach the tanker before U.S. forces executed helicopter landings on the vessel. Iran Observer reported that U.S. troops had seized the Bella 1 near Iceland before Russian forces could intervene, while Visioner described airborne operations against what it called Russia’s “shadow fleet,” both in posts dated January 7, 2026.

The enforcement actions come days after U.S. military forces conducted a surprise nighttime operation in Caracas that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Following that raid, senior officials in Trump’s administration said the United States would continue seizing sanctioned vessels connected to Venezuela.

“We are enforcing American laws with regards to oil sanctions,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during an appearance on NBC on Sunday. “We go to court. We get a warrant. We seize those boats with oil. And that will continue.”

The seizures mark a significant escalation in U.S. efforts to disrupt sanctioned oil networks linked to Venezuela, Iran, and allied entities, extending enforcement well beyond the Western Hemisphere and into international waters under federal court authorization.