U.S.authorities sold a seized Russian oil tanker to a maritime scrap dealer for well under market value in an “economically irrational” deal meant to thwart the owner’s bid to recover the vessel, the company lawyers said in court papers.The Justice Department was ordered to respond to the allegations, made by the ship’s Russian owner, Burevestmarin LLC, by 9 a.m.
Friday.The tanker, Bella 1, was seized by the U.S.military in the North Atlantic in early January after a weekslong chase on the high seas.
U.S.authorities said the ship, which they believed was carrying illegal Iranian oil, was caught fleeing an American blockade of Venezuela.
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