US Moves to Forfeit Ghost Tanker Skipper and 1.8 Million Barrels Tied to IRGC Financing

U.S. authorities filed a civil forfeiture complaint in D.C. seeking to seize the crude oil tanker Skipper and about 1.8 million barrels of oil linked to PdVSA, alleging the shipments funded the IRGC and its Qods Force and helped finance foreign terrorist activities. The Skipper is accused of evading sanctions with spoofed routes and false flags, shipping Iran- and Venezuela-origin crude that was later delivered worldwide (including to Cubametales) before being seized on the high seas in December 2025; OFAC had sanctioned the vessel in 2022 under a former name, Adisa. The case underscores efforts to disrupt sanctions evasion and terrorist financing networks.