Iranian tanker, Panama vessel released after Indonesia trial

2021-05-30 15:00:43 GMT2021-05-30 23:00:43(Beijing Time) Sina English

AFP

This undated handout picture released on Saturday by the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency shows crew members of the Iranian tanker MT Horse boarding their ship off the Riau Islands before leaving Indonesian waters.

Indonesia has released an Iranian tanker and a Panamanian vessel that were both seized at the beginning of the year on suspicion of illegal oil transfers, officials said on Saturday.

Following legal proceedings, the crude oil tankers – Iranian-flagged MT Horse and Panama-flagged MT Freya – left Indonesia on Friday, the country's Maritime Security Agency spokesperson said.

The captains of both tankers were found guilty last Tuesday of entering Indonesian territory without a permit.

MT Horse's Iranian captain Mehdi Monghasemjahromi and MT Freya's Chinese captain Chen Yoqun were each handed a suspended prison sentence of one year with a two-year probational period. The court also ordered Chen to pay a 2 billion rupiah (US$140,000) fine for dumping oil illegally in Indonesian waters.

Both captains were released from detention and were believed to have left Indonesia with the rest of the crew on Friday despite their sentences.

In January, the tankers were spotted off Kalimantan, Indonesia's section of Borneo island, and were later seized after the crew failed to respond to radio calls.

Indonesia's Maritime Security Agency or Bakamla claimed the crew were suspected of a string of violations, including failing to display the vessels' national flags, turning off their identification systems to avoid detection and illegally transferring oil.

The MT Horse "has been released after 125 days once the legal process was successfully concluded," the official Iranian news agency IRNA reported, citing a National Iranian Oil Co statement.

"Despite enduring challenges and isolation from their families, the crew made sacrifices to defend national interests and maintain the stream of oil and oil products exports from the country," the statement added.

Iran has previously been accused of trying to conceal its oil sales to avoid crippling United States sanctions.

In October, the administration of former US President Donald Trump slapped sanctions on Iran's oil sector over sales to countries, including Syria and Venezuela.

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