US seizes massive Oil Tanker linked to Nigeria firm over alleged terrorism financing, theft

The United States has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela over allegations of crude oil theft, piracy and involvement in a wide network of transnational crimes, marking a sharp escalation in Washington’s long-running confrontation with the Maduro government.

The vessel, listed on MarineTraffic as being operated by Nigeria-based Thomarose Global Ventures Ltd and owned by Marshall Islands–registered Triton Navigation Corp, was described by President Donald Trump as “the largest ever seized” in such an operation.

A dramatic video released by US Homeland Security showed armed operatives rappelling from a helicopter onto the ship, underscoring the scale and intensity of the mission.

The clip carried a bold warning: “If you threaten our nation or break the law, there is no place on land or sea where we won’t find you.”

US Attorney-General Pam Bondi said the tanker had been flagged for years over allegations that it was part of an illicit oil network used to finance foreign terrorist organisations.

According to her, the FBI, the Department of Defence, the Department of Homeland Security and the US Coast Guard jointly executed the seizure.

The development has further widened the already fraught relations between Washington and Caracas, where ideological rivalry, oil politics and accusations of interference have simmered for years.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro Moros condemned the operation outright, branding it “international piracy” and insisting that Venezuela would not bow to external intimidation or become an “oil colony.”

Maritime risk intelligence firm Vanguard Tech identified the vessel as Skipper, saying it had been “spoofing” its real location for months, a common tactic used by ships involved in sanctions evasion.

The tanker was sanctioned in 2022 by the US Treasury for allegedly helping transport oil that funded Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps–Quds Force.

Although MarineTraffic tracking data placed the vessel under the Guyanese flag, Guyana’s Maritime Administration swiftly denied the registration, calling the flag “false.”

Available voyage logs suggest the tanker made stops in Iran, Iraq and the UAE between June 30 and July 9, with its last verified coordinates recorded near Iran in mid-September before reappearing off Guyana in late October.

Analysts, however, caution that most of the positioning data may be unreliable due to prolonged spoofing.

A background check by TheCable reveals that Thomarose Global Ventures, incorporated in Nigeria in February 2012, is now listed as inactive in the records of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), raising further questions about ownership structures, operational control and oversight.

The seizure has triggered diplomatic ripples across multiple continents, and as investigations deepen, attention is now shifting to the opaque networks behind the vessel, networks that stretch from the Middle East to West Africa and the Caribbean, and which global authorities have long accused of laundering crude oil into illicit markets.

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