The Bella 1 is moving near Venezuela to import oil. CNN said the US Coast Guard has tried to approach the ship but it continues to move. The status of the chase has not been updated further.
A US official said the ship was part of a fleet involved in activities to evade Venezuelan sanctions. The ship is hanging a fake flag and is subject to confiscation.
The idea 1 was added to the US sanctions list in June 2024. The source said that Bella 1 was sanctioned under its anti-terrorism authority for being involved in the financial network of Sa'id al-Jamal - a figure identified as the financial funding source for the Houthi forces.
Other sources say the Bella 1 ship has been sanctioned by the US for its involvement in Iranian oil.
If arrested, it would be the third ship to be intercepted by the US in the Caribbean in recent times. On December 20, the US Department of Defense blocked a second tanker suspected of transporting sanctioned oil.
Earlier this month, another ship - the Skipper - was also subject to sanctions and was seized by the US off the coast of Venezuela.
Tensions between the US and Venezuela are escalating, as the Trump administration conducts airstrikes targeting vessels suspected of being involved in drug trafficking in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific.
