28.2.10

Arctic Sea: Victor gone to ground?



Viktor Matvejev
Hans Tanner

The Finnish criminal police could not obtain further information from Victor Matveyev, the sopposed beneficial owner of Arctic Sea via a Malta-based company, Arctic Sea Ltd, since he in December 2009 fled from Finland to Switzerland. The Maltese-flagged vessel with a 15-member Russian crew disappeared in the Atlantic on July 24 while carrying a $2-million shipment of timber from Finland to Algeria. It was eventually intercepted by the Russian Navy off West Africa on August 16. Eight alleged hijackers from Estonia, Latvia and Russia were arrested. Admiral Tarmo Kouts, the former head of the Estonian armed forces, the EU rapporteur on piracy suggested Russia was transporting guided missiles to Iran on the ship. As by a "weapons mafia" involving top Russian officials. The Russians seemed to treat Arctic Sea as a pirate ship, rather than a ship captured by pirates. Rather than being released, the crew was detained in Moscow for weeks."I think that if this journey had been successful, Russia could have ended up in a huge international scandal "I think that for this reason the order was given from the top to start this huge naval operation. We caught the boat to make sure we didn't end up in a nasty situation."



Viktor Matvejev may contact Hans Tanner of the Swiss ABC Maritime a sometime contractor for Aquaship Ltd, a Latvian shipowner organized in 1990 with the end of the Soviet era, a suggested financier of Victor. ABC also operates a fleet of river and sea tugs and barges working predominantly in the Caspian sea. ABC also has extensive operations in West Africa where Arctic Sea was found, such as this beauty.


Egon RusanovMeanwhile, Egon Rusanov, a lawyer for Dmitry Savins, has appealed again, seeking protection through Europe's human rights court for inhumane treatment after detainment in August 2009. Who he?


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