From: FleetMon
Greek Coast Guard and law enforcement agency or agencies intercepted Tanzania-flagged general cargo vessel Mesogio in Messinian Gulf, Greece, and took her to Kalamata port, reportedly on Feb 20. 6 crew were arrested. A big shipment of contraband cigarettes was found on board, see pic. Sailing records of the vessel are rather mysterious. According to one AIS source, on Feb 16 vessel was in Crimean waters, but according to Greek Coast Guard photos, vessel is in Kalamata, all right, no doubt about it. In recent AIS records only one port is listed – Varna, Bulgaria. Vessel’s history contains other names and other flags, including Ukrainian flag. I have an information from law enforcement agency of one of Eastern European countries, that literally, hundreds of seafarers, mainly of Ukrainian and other Eastern Europe nationalities, were sentenced in Europe during last 2-3 years for cigarettes contraband trafficking. The whole story goes deeper than just that….
