U.S. Coast Guard 'in active pursuit' of third vessel off Venezuela

The U.S. Coast Guard “is in active pursuit” of a sanctioned vessel in international waters off Venezuela, two U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter told NBC News.

The U.S. Coast Guard “is in active pursuit” of a sanctioned vessel in international waters off Venezuela, two U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter told NBC News.

“The United States Coast Guard is in active pursuit of a sanctioned dark fleet vessel that is part of Venezuela’s illegal sanctions evasion. It is flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order,” one of the officials said.

The vessel, known as Bella 1, was placed on the U.S. sanctions list in June 2024, according to a person familiar with the list.

The vessel was sanctioned under counterterrorism authority for its involvement in the network of Houthi financial facilitator Sa’id al-Jamal, according to the source.

Shadow fleet vessels usually do not operate exclusively for one country, the person added.