Swedish authorities have detained a sanctioned Russian vessel, the Adler, after boarding and inspecting the ship overnight on Dec. 21.
"They are not allowed to sail further without the go-ahead from the prosecutor," Swedish Customs Press Secretary Martin Hoglund told the regional broadcaster SVT.
The cargo ship Adler suffered engine failure and anchored off Sweden's west coast on Dec. 20. Swedish Customs then boarded the vessel and carried out an inspection in cooperation with the Coast Guard. The case has now been forwarded to Prosecutor Henrik Soderman at Sweden's National Unit for International Organized Crime.
The Adler has previously been used to transport Russian weapons and its owner, M Leasing LLC, is sanctioned by the U.S. and EU. The company was sanctioned for using its ships to carry North Korean ammunition to Russia for use in the war against Ukraine.
The boarding of the Adler follows heightened tensions between Russia and countries bordering the Baltic Sea. Russian "shadow fleet" tankers have been linked to sabotage operations and accused of launching drones over European cities.
In a notable case, the Eagle S oil tanker, believed to be a member of Moscow's shadow fleet, was suspected of deliberately sabotaging the Estlink 2 power cable in the Gulf of Finland.
While Finnish authorities dropped the case against the Eagle S in October 2025, the Danish government announced shortly thereafter that it would tighten controls on oil tankers passing through its waters in response to the threat posed by Russia's shadow fleet.
The move came after President Volodymyr Zelensky, citing intelligence reports, accused Russia of using the fleet to "launch and control" drones over European cities.
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