Dominican flag state officials are trying to establish the whereabouts of a suezmax tanker previously under arrest in the United Arab Emirates.
The 151,000-dwt Gulf Sky (built 1998) hit the headlines earlier this year following its alleged sale to an individual sanctioned by the US over links to Iranian trading.
The crew then contacted UK charity Human Rights at Sea (HRAS) in May over their lack of supplies and wages while at anchor in Khor Fakkan.
Now, HRAS and the Dominican flag state administration said they are "increasingly concerned about the change in status" of the vessel.
They said they had been informed that the suezmax had left UAE waters in breach of a court injunction and Dominican's own prohibition to sail notice.
No signal for eight days
The vessel’s location is unknown, with the last AIS signal received eight days ago.
Both organisations are working hard with national and international authorities to identify the ship's location and ascertain the condition of the 22 Indian crew members sailing under Captain Joginder Singh.
US authorities were immediately put on notice by the flag state, which became aware of the evolving situation on 13 July.
Singh had previously contacted HRAS to seek assistance for his crew.
HRAS said there was ongoing mediation on 2 June over crew wages and conditions on board, which consequently saw a partnership between the flag and the charity established on 22 June to address the matter.
HRAS chief executive David Hammond said: "Our first priority is to ensure that the crew are safe, are not under any form of duress either internal or external to the vessel, and that their location is identified as soon as possible.
Probe begins
"We are working closely with the Dominica flag and the UAE federal transport authority to seek clarity of the facts."
The Commonwealth of Dominica Office of Maritime Affairs and Marine Personnel has been engaged in an investigation of the Indian operator United Island Maritime Ventures and alleged beneficial owner Taif Mining Services after the ship was reflagged from Liberia.
This is due to the ship's alleged ties to Amir Dianat, one of two men charged on 1 May with fraudulently using the US financial system, the flag state said.
Eric Dawicki, the chief executive of the Dominica International Ship Registry, added that he is concerned about the health and welfare of the crew and "is abundantly concerned that the crew was coerced to pick up anchor and get underway, knowingly violating international and domestic law".
"Secondly, this office will not rest until we know the whereabouts of the vessel and its crew," he said. "We will engage in a multinational effort to locate and promulgate the release of the vessel to immediately return to UAE waters."
The crew had earlier said they had not been paid for three months.
Captain Singh said they had suffered from inadequate supplies of food, fresh water and fuel, as well as medical supplies and lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the outbreak.
TradeWinds has contacted manning agency Seven Seas Navigation of Mumbai for further information, but has been unable to contact United Island or Taif Mining.
Seafarers told to be patient
United Island told HRAS in May that the seafarers must show patience and understanding during the global pandemic in terms of repayment and repatriation.
The company assured the charity that it intended to repatriate the seafarers when lockdown eased and flights reopened.
The company acknowledged delay in paying the men and justified this as a ramification of the Covid-19 disruption to the banking sector, HRAS said.
United Island stated that all basic provisions had been delivered.
The company said there were "not many" outstanding salaries, given the chaos of the pandemic.
They will receive their money before signing off, the company pledged.
The Gulf Sky situation is complicated by the arrest of the ship in January in a dispute over the sale by Greece's Polembros Shipping to Taif Mining in Oman in October last year.
Polembros was investigated and later cleared by the US over the alleged links to Iranian trading of two buyers identified by the US, and is now trying to recover $10m from the deal that is currently being held by a US bank.
US suspicions
Iranian nationals Dianat and Kamran Lajmiri are alleged by the US to have set up a web of shell companies registered around the world to buy the Gulf Sky for the benefit of Iran's oil industry, which the US has maintained is used to fund its military.
However, Polembros told TradeWinds that all of the due diligence done by the company showed the buyer was controlled by a "wealthy Omani family", and that the outfit had signed statements stipulating it had nothing to do with Iran.
Arbitration fight
The shipowner has started arbitration in London to try to recover the funds. The case was expected to have been heard by the UAE's Supreme Court at the end of May.
At the same time, the US government is looking to seize the $10m held in a US bank identified as Wells Fargo, along with the $2.3m deposit that was paid to Polembros.
