Captain of Russian shadow fleet tanker charged after UK commandos seize Smyrtos

The captain of a Russian shadow fleet vessel which was intercepted by British troops in the English Channel will appear in court charged with breaching sanctions.

Indian national Ajay Pant, 38, has been charged with directly or indirectly supplying or delivering by ship prohibited oil or oil products from Russia to a third country in June 2026, in contravention of Regulation 46Z9B of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, the NCA said on Monday.

He will appear at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday.

It comes after the tanker was raided by Royal Marines during the early hours of Sunday morning, and was formally detained and sanctioned by the UK.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed that Royal Marine commandos and specially trained law enforcement officers from the National Crime Agency boarded a sanctioned oil tanker during a six-hour operation – the first UK-led operation of its kind.

Royal Marine commandos and officers from the National Crime Agency seized the tanker Smyrtos in the Channel early on Sunday in the first UK-led operation to capture a sanctioned vessel.

Under the terms of an order issued by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander on Monday, the vessel is now formally prevented from leaving the UK.

The ship, which sailed under the flag of Cameroon but is described as “stateless” by the UK Government, remains anchored off Weymouth, in Dorset, along with Royal Navy vessels HMS Sutherland and HMS Ledbury that took part in the operation.

Ms Alexander said: “Today, I took the decision to detain a sanctioned shadow fleet vessel travelling through the Channel, carrying Russian oil which helps fund Putin’s barbaric war in Ukraine.”

It is understood that another 24 Georgian and Indian crew members remain on board and are assisting the investigation.

The vessel Smyrtos will be provisionally moved to an anchorage off the south coast of England and be monitored for any environmental or safety concerns.

Joanne Jakymec, chief Crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “The CPS has decided to prosecute Ajay Pant for breaching Russian sanctions following a National Crime Agency investigation and the seizure of the shadow oil tanker, MV Smyrtos, travelling through the English Channel over the last weekend.

“We remind all concerned that criminal proceedings against Pant are active and he has the right to a fair trial.

“It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”

Moscow’s shadow fleet is reported to be made up of more than a thousand ageing tankers which illicitly ship oil and other goods out of Russia by flying the flags of other countries, with the aim of evading sanctions imposed by the West since the invasion of Ukraine began.

British forces have already been involved in tracking shadow fleet vessels for several years and have supported operations by other countries to seize the ships.

But Sunday’s operation was the first time UK personnel had seized a sanctioned vessel directly as the Government tries to force shadow fleet ships to take longer, more expensive routes or risk being intercepted.

Sir Keir Starmer said in a statement: “This operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fuelling (President Vladimir) Putin’s war in Ukraine that they cannot hide.

“I want to pay tribute to all those involved, including our armed forces and law enforcement officers who keep this country safe 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.”

It comes as Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis said: “Operations like this require skill, professionalism and courage. I pay tribute to our armed forces personnel and all those involved.

“Russia relies on its shadow fleet to fund their conflict in Ukraine and our interdiction delivers a blow to Putin’s illegal war.”

Meanwhile, shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge told: "I welcome the news that the government have intercepted the tanker but I think we have to ask why 94 shadow fleet vessels passed through in the year to May when Starmer announced this would stop in March."

Russia has been operating a "shadow fleet" of vessels with obscure ownership structures to evade international sanctions imposed on its oil exports.

Responsible for carrying 75% of Russia’s sanctioned oil, the shadow fleet of over 700 vessels provides a critical lifeline for the Kremlin, the MoD explained. The government has already sanctioned more than 500 vessels.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch also backed British armed forces’ interception of a Russian shadow fleet tanker, writing on X: “I pay tribute to the brave Royal Marine Commandos who boarded a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker overnight in the English Channel.

“Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine is funded by their oil exports in defiance of sanctions.

“As Leader of the Opposition, I support the Government in standing with Ukraine.”

However, found hundreds of vessels carrying Russian oil continue to sail through UK waters every year, with some accompanied by Russian warships, the Treasury has only completed 70 investigations since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

Of those, two resulted in warning letters, while the remaining 68 resulted in no further action. 

The investigations related to vessels, shipping companies, insurers or other parties suspected of links to the export of Russian oil products.

The UK’s maritime Russian oil sanctions regime, introduced in December 2022, was designed to choke off the Kremlin’s main source of funding for the war against Ukraine by restricting the shipping, insurance and transport of Russian oil.

But prominent anti-corruption campaigner Bill Browder told the findings showed in most cases there were “no consequences” for those who breached the sanctions.

Mr Browder, a former investor in Russia, was barred from the country after he uncovered a multi-million-pound Kremlin-linked corruption scandal with his lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, who was later detained and died in a Russian prison.

He told: “It doesn’t surprise me. The only thing that stops (Russia) is real consequences, and it doesn’t sound like there are any at all here.”“If they’re not getting into trouble, it just means they carry on and try to do more of the same.

“It’s just them continuing to test us in every possible way to see when. When enough is enough. And so far, they can do pretty much everything without any proper reaction.

“We should intervene and impound the ships as they sail in our waters and prosecute the individuals involved. If that were to happen, they would no longer be moving around the UK.”

The findings have also provoked the ire of some of the UK’s Ukrainian allies.

Oksana Kuzan, head of the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Centre, a think tank, warned the lack of enforcement action meant Russia’s shadow fleet effectively faced “no deterrent.”

She warned the West’s response risked becoming “largely declaratory in nature”.

She said the shadow fleet, believed to number more than a thousand ageing vessels globally, posed growing environmental and security risks because many ships use spoofed or disabled tracking systems while transporting Russian oil through crowded sea routes, including the English Channel.

The warnings come after the Government lifted some sanctions on Russian oil products on Wednesday in response to spiralling prices due to the war in Iran.

Russia expert and former NATO official John Lough said the Kremlin would interpret the decision as a “retreat”, adding that “the Russians will be rubbing their hands.”