Cargo Ship Heading to Ukraine with Suspicious Load Sinks: What It Was Carrying Revealed

A cargo ship named Raptor, heading to Ukraine with a suspicious load, has sunk off the coast of Greece. This was reported by the Greek newspaper Kathimerini.

The ship had a crew of 14 members. One sailor has been rescued, one confirmed dead, while 12 others are considered missing. "It has become known that the ship was included on the black list of international monitoring bodies (Paris Memorandum of Understanding and Black Sea Memorandum, Paris MOU & Black Sea MOU). Two years ago, it was found that the documents concerning the crew members were deficient, and there were conflicting entries in the fuel book. The latter is interpreted as an indication that the ship may have been on illegal, unreported routes, meaning it could be involved in smuggling," the publication states.

According to documents, the ship was transporting salt to Istanbul, but the surviving crew member stated that the actual destination was Ukraine, and when the ship began to sink, the captain refused to call for help. "Recent evidence suggests that the ship may have been utilizing illegal, unreported routes and been involved in smuggling," the newspaper reports.

"This is likely also due to the fact that the crew, following the instructions of the shipping company, did not request help on Saturday, despite the leak that had already occurred on the ship. Help was only requested on Sunday, just minutes before the ship sank," Kathimerini adds.

Similarly, the Greek news portal Newsit quotes authorities who believe the crew did not seek help on Saturday, despite the leak, because "the ship was likely transporting illegal cargo."

According to reports from the Macedonian news agency in Athens, the distressed Raptor cargo ship sank on Sunday in an area 4.5 nautical miles southwest of Lesbos, in heavy storm conditions. The rescue operation involved passing cargo ships, Greek port service motor boats, as well as a military helicopter and a naval frigate. A sailor was found holding on to a barrel in the water. He was airlifted and taken to the hospital. Preliminary information suggests the cargo ship left Egypt with a load of salt and was headed to Istanbul. The crew included two Syrian nationals, four Indian nationals, and eight Egyptians.