The anchor and anchor chain of a vessel suspected of damaging an undersea telecommunications cable in the Gulf of Finland have dragged along the seabed for at least several tens of kilometres before reaching the point of damage to the telecommunications cable owned by Elisa, Finnish police said Sunday.
The founding’s are based on the examinations conducted so far and gives reason to suspect the vessel, the police said, adding that underwater investigations have revealed a drag mark spanning several tens of kilometres.
Subsea examinations have focused on, among other things, drag marks found on the seabed, which according to Finnish authorities ‘appear to align with the vessel’s route.’
A travel ban has been imposed on one of the two crew members of the vessel who had previously been arrested. The crew member in question is a Russian national. The vessel has a total of 14 crew members on board, and currently, a travel ban has been imposed on three of them.
The other crew member previously arrested is a national of Azerbaijan, and the Helsinki District Court on January 4 ordered to be placed in pre-trial detention.
For the purposes relating to the criminal investigation, Finish police are not providing further details regarding their rank.
Last month, Finnish authorities escorted a cargo vessel into Kantvik harbour under heavy guard. The authorities, acting in a joint operation, took control of the vessel suspected of damaging an undersea telecommunications cable in the Gulf of Finland.
When the vessel was spotted, its anchor chain was found to be lowered into the sea, the Finnish police said.
The Border Guard’s patrol vessel Turva and helicopter found the suspected vessel within Finland’s exclusive economic zone. The Border Guard instructed the vessel to stop and raise the anchor. It also requested that the vessel move to a safe anchorage within Finnish territorial waters.
The damage site reported by telecommunications provider Elisa was within Estonia’s exclusive economic zone.
The 9822-dwt general cargo vessel, flagged in St Vincent and Grenadines, has 14 crew members on board. Authorities said the crew are nationals of Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan.
The police, supported by the Border Guard and the Defence Forces, have conducted maritime investigations. Estonian authorities have participated in the investigative efforts on site.
The investigation makes use of the Gulf of Finland Coast Guard’s diverse underwater equipment, including submersible robots, side-scan sonar, and multi-beam echo sounders. The Defence Forces are also providing assistance in the investigation of the cable damage.
The Helsinki Police Department is leading the operation, supported by the Border Guard. The National Bureau of Investigation is responsible for the criminal investigation into the case.
The police continue the investigation into the damage caused to Elisa’s telecommunications cable, using forensic and tactical methods. At this stage, the gathering and analysis of information is still ongoing. Information has been collected from various sources, including other authorities, the cable damage site, the cargo vessel, and the crew members’ communication devices.
