Man suspected of captaining intercepted Russian shadow fleet tanker appears in court

The suspected captain of a Russian shadow fleet vessel intercepted by British troops in the English Channel has appeared at Southampton Magistrates Court charged with breaching sanctions.

Indian national Ajay Pant, 38, has been charged with directly or indirectly supplying or delivering by ship prohibited oil or oil products from Russia to a third country in June 2026, in contravention of Regulation 46Z9B of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.

Pant appeared at Court One of Southampton Magistrates Court on a videolink from Bournemouth Police station, where he was sitting next to his solicitor wearing a grey T-shirt.

The Indian national spoke in English to confirm his name, date of birth, and provided an Indian address.

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Pant gave no indication to his plea during the short hearing.

Southampton Magistrates' Court heard a ‘substantial amount of oil was found’ on board the MV Smyrtos seized by the Royal Marines and the NCA on Sunday.

They found 98,000 tonnes of oil onboard the tanker, described as having a ‘very significant’ value by prosecutor Varun Chuni.

The vessel entered UK waters ‘without a legitimate flag’ on the 13th June off the coast of Margate, the Prosecution told the court.

Authorities had been tracking the Cameroon-flagged vessel since it departed Russian waters earlier this month.

Pant was remanded into custody and will next appear at Bournemouth Crown Court for a preparation hearing on July 16.

The offence of which Pant is accused carries a maximum sentence of 10 years' imprisonment.

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