Sweden Intensifies Crackdown on Stateless Vessels with Second Detention
Authorities in Sweden are intensifying a crackdown on unseaworthy vessels that they suspect could be linked to Russia’s shadow fleet. For the second time in a week, Sweden has boarded a vessel transiting through its territorial waters due to concerns of seaworthiness and the belief that the vessel was operating under a false flag.
On Thursday evening, March 12, the Swedish Coast Guard, aided by the police, executed a planned operation to intercept the product tanker Sea Owl I (74,998 dwt). The operation was a combination of a police helicopter and a speedboat stopping the tanker off Trelleborg.
Built in 2007, the ship is 228 meters (748 feet) in length. It was claiming to be operating under the Camaros flag since 2025, but that is believed to be a false registry. Ownership is listed as a corporation in the Marshall Islands, and the Swedish authorities report that the vessel, in recent years, has transported oil products between Russia and Brazil. The European Union sanctioned the vessel in October 2024 for its involvement in the Russian oil trade, and the UK sanctioned it in October 2025. The United States has sanctioned the vessel’s former managers.
The Sea Owl I was coming from Santos, Brazil, with ballast, and its AIS was saying it was bound for Tallinn, Estonia, although the Swedish authorities report it was heading to Primorsk, Russia. The decision to stop the ship, they reported, was based on seaworthiness concerns. The ship had its class withdrawn in October 2024, and records show its last inspection was in 2023.
“Our overall assessment is that the risk of safety deficiencies on board is too high. On this basis, the vessel cannot be allowed innocent passage. The threats to maritime safety and the environment are too high. Therefore, there is a basis for an intervention against the ship,” said Daniel Stenling, Swedish Coast Guard Deputy Chief of Operations.
The authorities added that while investigations at this stage are focusing on the vessel’s lack of seaworthiness, the scope of the probe could broaden depending on the development of events and as more Swedish authorities get involved. The authorities were conducting searches on board, interviewing crewmembers, and investigating the suspected false documents, said senior prosecutor Adrien Combier-Hogg.
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Prosecutors reported on Friday that they have expanded the preliminary investigation to include the master of the ship, a Russian citizen. They are saying they suspect the master presented false documents, which is a felony under Swedish law.
The boarding and detention of the Sea Owl I is the second incident by Swedish authorities in a span of days. On March 6, Sweden detained the cargo ship Caffa that was sailing under a false flag. The captain of that vessel is also under detention for allegedly presenting multiple false documents to the authorities. The cargo ship is being detained for safety deficiencies identified during a Port State inspection.