Image of the oil tanker Olina, shared on social media by the US Secretary of Homeland Security, Friday, January 9, 2026. Credit: AFP / AFP / Profimedia
US forces have seized a fifth oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea, according to the announcement made by the US Army's Southern Command on Friday, CNN and BBC write.
The US military says the Olina tanker was seized “without incident”. It was sailing near Venezuela under the flag of East Timor, according to Marine Traffic.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the ship was suspected of carrying “embargoed oil” and the operation took place after it “left Venezuela trying to escape US forces.”
The world's criminals are on notice.
Early this morning, the @USCG executed a boarding and seizure of the Motor Tanker Olina in international waters east of the Caribbean Sea. As another “ghost fleet” tanker ship suspected of carrying embargoed oil, this vessel had departed… pic.twitter.com/vvS3u3nrvl
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) January 9, 2026
The Olina tanker is the fifth vessel seized by the US in recent weeks and is under sanctions from several countries.
Maritime risk company Vanguard Tech said the vessel was attempting to bypass the US naval blockade in the Caribbean Sea.
Two more oil tankers seized this week
Recently, the US seized two other oil tankers associated with Venezuela, one of which was under the Russian flag, in the Atlantic Ocean, another year in the Caribbean Sea.
The Russian-flagged Marinera, which was seized with the help of British forces, provided logistical support at sea and in the air. The ship is accused of being part of a shadow fleet carrying oil for Venezuela, Russia and Iran in violation of the US sanctions regime.
The other tanker, the M/T Sophia, was said by US authorities to be engaged in “illicit activities”.
The operations come just days after US special forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife to bring them to US justice.
US President Donald Trump has announced that Venezuela, the country with the largest oil reserves in the world, will “hand over” up to 50 million barrels to the United States, worth about 2.8 billion dollars.
US foreign policy chief Marco Rubio said oil would be sold “on the market at market prices” and that the US would control how the proceeds are distributed “in a way that benefits the Venezuelan people”.
The Greek publication Naftemporiki wrote that after Maduro's arrest by the US, oil “hunters”, also known as “wildcatters” (independent contractors who drill in unexplored areas), are racing to get deals in Venezuela, trying to catch up with the big energy groups weighing the risks of re-entering the country.
The mad rush for Venezuelan oil: who gets there first?
