Sea-Gull

On Jan 25, 2026, the Dutch Coastguard inspected the 'Sea Gull', which was moored off the coast of Scheveningen. The inspection revealed that the vessel's captain had falsified the official ship's documents: instead of Russia, Estonia was listed as the port of departure. The captain was arrested for forgery. The Coast Guard Center had observed unusual sailing behaviour from the vessel. subsequently moored in the anchorage off the coast of Scheveningen. A Coast Guard boarding team, consisting of the Maritime Police, Customs, and the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee, decided to inspect the tamler. which had approached the anchorage to fix a new anchor, as the other anchor had been lost en route. The captain stated that the vessel was en route from Estonia to Rotterdam. However, verification in the Coast Guard systems indicated a different port of departure, namely Kaliningrad in Russia. The Maritime Police Team of the National Expertise & Operations (LX) then launched an investigation, which lasted several days. During this time, the ship remained stationary. The official ship's documents were checked: these also listed Estonia as the port of departure. According to the documents, the ship was loaded with soybean oil. Customs thoroughly searched the ship and took samples of the cargo. On the orders of the public prosecutor, the captain was arrested on suspicion of forgery. During his interrogation, the man admitted that he had indeed lied about the port of departure. He had hoped to avoid possible European sanctions against Russia this way. It turned out that the captain had picked up a cargo in Russia with the intention of shipping it to another country outside Europe. During this long voyage, the ship had to refuel in Rotterdam. The samples showed that the ship was indeed loaded with soybean oil, not with sanctioned goods. Following the investigation, the captain was released after two nights in jail. He was fined €4,000 for forgery. The ship resumed its voyage on Jan 29, headed to Oran with an ETA as of Feb 5. Report with photos: https://kustwacht.nl/nieuws/kapitein-schip-afkomstig-uit-rusland-aangehouden-voor-valsheid-in-geschrifte/