🔗 Share this article Satellite Image Shows First Venezuelan Tanker Seized by US is Currently Near Texas. American agents roped onto the vessel of the Skipper on 10 December. Orbital data and ship tracking data has confirmed that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel seized by the United States for reportedly carrying embargoed crude from the Venezuelan regime – is now off the coast of Texas. Vantor satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the ship is in the vicinity of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking feeds from MarineTraffic presently places the vessel about 80km offshore. The tanker Skipper was taken into custody by US authorities on the tenth of December and has been blacklisted by multiple nations. When it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the flag of Guyana. This interception was succeeded by the interception of a another tanker, the Centuries tanker. It – in contrast to the Skipper – was not under official restrictions when it was taken into US custody. American agencies are now pursuing a third ship, which has been identified by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1. President Donald Trump stated yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”. Writing on X, the TankerTrackers group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an typical pace of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel left unless her speed drops”. The group further stated the tanker is “likely heading south-east towards South Africa”.