Related videos:
The United States initiated this week the procedures for the definitive seizure of the tanker Skipper, confiscated in international waters in December 2025.
According to statements from the Trump administration, a civil forfeiture lawsuit was filed this Friday in the District Court for the District of Columbia to seize the oil tanker M/T Skipper and approximately 1.8 million barrels of crude oil supplied by Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PdVSA).
According to the accusation, the vessel and its cargo are subject to forfeiture as they constitute a source of influence and funding for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including the Quds Force, which the U.S. has designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
Part of the shipment was destined for Cuba: the shipping documents indicated that approximately 1.1 million barrels were to be delivered to Cubametales, the Cuban state company for the import and export of oil, designated by OFAC in July 2019.
The seizure at sea and the transfer to Texas
The official document details that on December 10, 2025, U.S. law enforcement seized the Skipper offshore in compliance with a court-authorized order.
At that moment, the ship claimed to be flying a false Guyanese flag, which made it stateless.
Subsequently, the tanker and its cargo were moved to waters off the coast of Texas.
The complaint describes the Skipper as part of a "clandestine fleet" that has allegedly operated at least since 2021 to facilitate the shipment and sale of petroleum products for the benefit of the IRGC.
According to the text, the ship transported crude oil from Iran and Venezuela and delivered it to various locations around the world through ship-to-ship transfers, concealing its routes with tactics such as location spoofing, false flags, and other maneuvers to evade sanctions.
As an example, the document claims that in 2024, the Skipper delivered approximately three million barrels of Iranian crude to Syria, and that it continued to move illicit oil until 2025, including shipments from Iran "at least twice" that year.
Cargo from Venezuela in November 2025 and the connection to Cuba
The text states that, "more recently," in November 2025, the Skipper loaded approximately 1.8 million barrels of Venezuelan crude oil at the José Terminal in Venezuela.
The shipping data indicated that 1.1 million of those barrels would be delivered to Cubametales in Cuba.
The statement recalls that the OFAC sanctioned the Skipper on November 3, 2022, when the vessel was named Adisa, for facilitating shipments of illicit oil.
According to the accusation, the revenues from the sale of those petroleum products would finance activities of the IRGC, including the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, support for terrorism, and human rights violations.
The document states that the so-called "phantom fleet," including the Skipper, is "essential" for generating revenue for adversarial regimes through the transportation of Iranian oil and from other countries classified as illicit.
The statement indicates that the case is being investigated by the FBI office in Minneapolis and HSI in Washington D.C., with substantial support from HSI New York.
The litigation involves the Money Laundering, Narcotics, and Forfeiture Section of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, federal prosecutors from the District of Columbia, and staff from the National Security Division.
Filed under: