U.S. Authorities Initiate Sanctions Enforcement

On September 8, 2023, the Justice Department announced the seizing of 980,000 barrels of Iranian crude oil, that was being transported in violation of US sanctions against Iran. The M/T SUEZ RAJAN (IMO# 9524475) was identified in April by US authorities as carrying crude oil for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). As a result of proceedings commenced by the US authorities, the vessel’s owner pleaded guilty for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The owner of the tankship, Suez Rajan Limited, was sentenced to three years of corporate probation and was ordered to pay a fine of $2.6 million, making the first-ever criminal resolution to a sanctions’ violation, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). In addition, the vessel’s operator, Empire Navigation, agreed to cooperate with the authorities and transport the Iranian oil to the United States in exchange for no further criminal prosecution.

The transfer of 1m barrels of Iranian oil to the SUEZ RAJAN, was detected by non-profit organization United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), through satellite images and transponder analysis. Prosecutors revealed in a court filing that participants attempted to disguise the origin of the cargo, via a ship-to-ship (STS) operation with a third vessel, from which only a small amount of oil was allegedly loaded. The US had legal grounds to seize SUEZ RAJAN, since her financier, Fleetscape, is an affiliate of Oaktree Capital, a Los-Angeles based company.

The contraband cargo is now the subject of a civil forfeiture action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. According to the DOJ, the forfeiture complaint alleges that the oil aboard the vessel is subject to forfeiture based on U.S. terrorism and money laundering statutes.

More information in conjunction with the details of the case can be found through the following official press release published by the Department of Justice: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-first-criminal-resolution-involving-illicit-sale-and-transport .