US seizes Venezuela-linked oil tanker 'defying Trump's sanctions', marking sixth grab in weeks
The vessel was seized in Caribbean waters as the US campaign to control Venezuela's oil industry ramps up
US troops have seized another oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea which the Trump administration claims has ties to Venezuela.
Listen to this article
Donald Trump’s forces captured its sixth vessel on Thursday morning amid the US president’s campaign to control the production and export of oil in Venezuela, following its extraordinary capture of its former president, Nicolas Maduro.
The vessel, named the Motor Tanker Veronica, was seized in Venezuelan waters and was “operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Thursday.
Ms Noem also posted a brief video appearing to show part of the ship’s seizure.
The footage shows helicopters hovering over the deck of the merchant vessel as armed soldiers swooped onto the deck by rope.
“Our heroic Coast Guard men and women once again ensured a flawlessly executed operation, in accordance with international law,” Ms Noem added.
Read more: US 'seizing' Venezuela linked tanker in Caribbean marking fifth grab in recent weeks
Read more: Sanctioned Russian 'shadow fleet' tanker is sailing through the English Channel
Early this morning, a Coast Guard tactical team conducted a pre-dawn boarding and seizure of Motor Tanker Veronica in the Caribbean. As another sanctioned ghost fleet tanker, Motor Tanker Veronica had previously passed through Venezuelan waters, and was operating in defiance of… pic.twitter.com/MyWyQGH1h0
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) January 15, 2026
U.S. Southern Command said Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s biggest aircraft carrier, to make the capture.
Last week, the US captured its fifth ship, the Olina, which was falsely flying the flag of Timor Leste according to ship tracking site Equasis.
Citing an industry source, Reuters reported the vessel was part of a flotilla that departed the country shortly after the US swooped on ousted Venezuelan leader Maduro.
Two other ships were seized days before as part of US enforcement action, one of which was sanctioned by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control in both 2021 and 2024 while sailing under the name Tia.
The seizures were conducted as part of the US Coast Guard's dual operation to seize Venezuela-linked oil tankers in a "meticulously coordinated" operation, US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.
The operations, which took place within hours of each other, saw troops board one ship in the North Atlantic Sea and another in international waters near the Caribbean.
The tankers - the Marinera and the Sophia - were "either last docked in Venezuela or en route to it."