French and Danish authorities have refused to comment on whether French investigation is related to drone incursions
French police arrested the captain and the first officer of a sanctioned tanker suspected of operating to Russia’s “parallel fleet” after the Navy approached the ship, authorities said Thursday.
“Thanks to our Navy commands and the crew of the French Navy who intervened this weekend aboard a Russian ghost fleet, currently anchored off Saint-Nazare,” wrote Prime Minister Sebastien Leconnu in X.
“Its action contributed to the arrest of two crew members.”
Brest prosecutor Stephane Kellenberger, whose office is conducting the investigation into Boracay, said in a statement that the two detained people identified themselves as the captain and the immediate ship.
They are accused of not having evidence of the ship’s nationality and of not having fulfilled the orders, and their detention has been prolonged.
Although President Emmanuel Macron has favorably welcomed the investigation into the ship, estimating that Russia’s “ghost fleet” has between 600 and 1000 ships, the French authorities have kept confidential about the investigation.
Boracay, who was sanctioned by Britain and the European Union, came from the Russian Porto de Primórsk on September 20, according to Marinetrafic data.
It was approximately 50 nautical miles (90 km) south of Copenhagen, leaving the Baltic Sea, when the drone activity forced the closing of the city airport around 6:30 pm GMT of September 22, according to Marinetracfic data.
It was also observed to travel south along the western coast of Denmark on the night of September 24, when drones were reported flying north of Esbjerg and near several nearby airports.
French and Danish authorities have refused to comment on whether French investigation is related to drone incursions.
Kremlin said Wednesday it had no information about the vessel, but added that the Russian military had to act on occasion to restore the order when foreign countries took what spokesman Dmitry Peskov described as “provocative actions.”
