🔗 Share this article Imagery Image Shows First Venezuelan Tanker Seized by US is Currently Near Texas. American personnel boarding the vessel of the tanker Skipper on December 10th. Orbital data and ship tracking data has verified that the oil tanker named Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for allegedly transporting sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas. A satellite firm's orbital photographs dated 21 December indicates the tanker is in the vicinity of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from MarineTraffic currently positions the vessel about 50 miles from the coast. The Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been blacklisted by several nations. At the time it was intercepted, it was incorrectly sailing under the flag of the nation of Guyana. This interception was followed by the capture of a another tanker, the Centuries. This ship – unlike the first vessel – was not yet under sanctions when it was taken into American control. American agencies are now pursuing a third such vessel, which has been named by the risk management group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President said yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”. Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group said the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “approximately a month of diesel left unless her velocity decreases”. The monitoring service further stated the tanker is “probably heading in a southeasterly direction towards the South African coast”.