US seizes Venezuelan oil tankers; Alameda Coast Guard helps with mission

Raw: Alameda Coast Guard Cutter part of Venezuelan oil tanker seizure

U.S. forces on Wednesday said they seized two sanctioned oil tankers linked to Venezuela, including one intercepted in the North Atlantic after a lengthy pursuit. The Alameda Coast Guard Cutter Munro was part of one of the missions. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shared some video.

ALAMEDA, Calif. - U.S. forces on Wednesday said they seized two sanctioned oil tankers linked to Venezuela, including one intercepted in the North Atlantic after a lengthy pursuit. 

Local perspective:

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Munro, home-ported in Alameda, Calif., tracked one of the tankers, called Bella 1, across the Atlantic after an earlier attempt to board it in the Caribbean last month was rebuffed by the vessel’s crew, according to a lengthy post on X from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. 

Noem said Munro followed the ship into waters between Iceland and the United Kingdom before U.S. personnel finally boarded and seized it. 

"The heroic crew of the USCGC Munro pursued this vessel across the high seas and through treacherous storms— keeping diligent watch, and protecting our country with the determination and patriotism that make Americans proud," Noem wrote. "These brave men and women deserve our nation’s thanks for their selfless devotion to duty."

Big picture view:

Cutter Munro based in Alameda, Calif. was part of the Venezuelan oil tanker mission on Jan. 7, 2026. Photo: Kristi Noem 

Noem said that both ships are part of a large "ghost fleet" of sanctioned vessels that carry oil from Russia, Iran and Venezuela in defiance of Western sanctions, mostly to customers in Asia.

The government said the tanker was sanctioned in 2024 for allegedly smuggling cargo for a company linked to the militant group Hezbollah and has ties to Venezuela. Over the past month, Noem said the crew reportedly repainted the vessel and changed the flag it was flying in an apparent effort to evade U.S. authorities. 

Officials also said a second sanctioned tanker, called Sophia, was seized in the Caribbean in a separate action. Both vessels had been "either last docked in Venezuela or en route to it," Noem said in a social media post. 

The military handed control of the North Atlantic vessel to law enforcement officials after the seizure, a U.S. official said on condition of anonymity because of the operation’s sensitivity. 

The ship’s pursuit came after it refused to allow a Coast Guard boarding in Caribbean waters in December and instead steamed northward across the Atlantic until it was intercepted in international waters. 

The seizures form part of ongoing U.S. efforts to enforce sanctions and interdict vessels involved in transporting Venezuelan oil in defiance of U.S. restrictions.

Cutter Munro based in Alameda, Calif. was part of the Venezuelan oil tanker mission on Jan. 7, 2026. Photo: Kristi Noem 

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