Ship Flying Fake Guyana Flag Detained At Venezuela’s Guamache Port

Oil Tanker — Image for representation purposes only

Authorities in Venezuela have detained a tanker named Four Plus for sailing in their waters without permission and flying a fake Guyanese flag.

The incident took place on January 12, 2025, at Guamache port on Margarita Island, about 25 miles off Venezuela’s coast.

A team of officials, including the Coast Guard, anti-drug intelligence, and military counter-intelligence personnel, carried out the detention.

Vice Admiral Leonardo Castellano Molina, who heads the Eastern Maritime Defense Zone, ordered the investigation into the tanker’s suspicious activities.

The Four Plus is a 45,000 dwt product tanker built in 2000. It was previously named Yong Xin and is operated by Shanghai Xuanrun Shipping Co., a company based in China.

The ship has been owned by Chinese interests since 2018 and changed its name in October 2024.

According to AIS (Automatic Identification System) data, the vessel left Ningbo, China, on November 22, 2024, and arrived at Point Lisas Anchorage in Trinidad and Tobago on January 5, 2025.

The AIS signal stopped after that, making it unclear when the tanker entered the Venezuelan waters.

The Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) of Guyana confirmed that the ship is not registered in Guyana and does not have the right to fly the country’s flag.

MARAD issued a statement on January 13 saying, “The vessel is not authorized to fly the Guyana flag or claim Guyanese nationality.”

MARAD added that Guyana has a closed Ships’ Registry, which only allows vessels owned by Guyanese nationals, residents, or citizens of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) states to be registered.

The department also clarified that it does not offer a “flag of convenience” to foreign ships.

Venezuela retiene el buque tanquero Four Plus con bandera guyanesa tras violar la soberanía del país via @venprensa https://t.co/eq5HQD2QKy

— Venezolana de Prensa (@VENPRENSA) January 13, 2025

This is not the first time Guyana has dealt with false flag operations. Recently, five oil tankers linked to Syria, Iran, and Venezuela were found falsely claiming Guyanese registration.

The United States sanctioned these ships, and Guyana confirmed that none of them were legally registered in the country.

In a similar case in 2022, a ship carrying ammunition worth over $5 million was detained in Senegal while falsely flying the Guyana flag.

Investigation revealed that its registration was issued by a fraudulent company called the International Maritime Safety Agency of Guyana (IMSAG). Guyana then cut its ties with IMSAG after finding its illegal activities.

The misuse of fake ship registrations has become a major issue in the maritime industry.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) flagged the IMSAG-administered Guyana registry in 2024, warning that fraudulent registration certificates were still being issued despite the government’s actions to prevent it.

The IMO plans to discuss the issue during its Legal Committee session in March 2025.

Reference: guyanatimesgy

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