The captain of the Eagle S tanker, registered in the Cook Islands, was accused of anchoring a ship and dragging it about 90km underwater last December, damaging five underground cables in the Gulf of Finland.
The captain and two senior officers of the Eagle S tanker were accused of "serious criminal sabotage and serious communication harassment," the Office of the Deputy Prosecutor General of Finland informed on August 11.
Deputy Attorney General Jukka Rappe revealed to AFP that many members of the Eagle S crew are Indian and Georgia citizens.
Finland launched a criminal investigation after the Est Link 2 and 4 telecommunication cables connecting Finland and Estonia were severed on December 25, 2024.
"The owners of the cables have suffered a total direct damage of at least 60 million euros, including repair costs alone," the statement said.
According to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of Finland, the break in electricity and telecommunication cables in the Baltic Sea also poses a serious risk to energy and telecommunications supplies in Finland.
After denying the crimes, during the investigation, the defendants (now banned from leaving Finland) argued that Finland had no authority in the case, as the cable break occurred outside the country's territory.
However, according to Deputy Attorney General Jukka Rappe, because the cable cut "seriously endangers important functions of society", Finland's authority was applied in the case.
"Given the fact that these are cables with extremely large cables, the danger is obvious, so this action can be considered to have occurred in Finland, even though the cables were cut outside the territory of Finland," he said.
The trial will begin within two weeks, the Deputy Attorney General of Finland said.
The Eagle S is believed to belong to the Russian shadow fleet, used oil tankers used to circumvent Russia's oil export laws.
Finland has not accused Russia of involvement, although officials have noted that the Eagle S has just left the Russian port with a shipment of petroleum products.
When the cable broke in the Baltic Sea, the Eagle S was immediately seized. A few weeks later, Finnish President Alexander Stubb said the incident was certainly related to Russia.
Tensions have increased in the Baltic Sea since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out in February 2022.
A series of underwater explosions ruptured the Nord Stream gas pipeline transporting Russian gas to Europe. The cause and perpetrator of the Nord Stream explosion in September 2022 have not yet been determined.
In October 2023, the Balticconnector gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia was closed after being damaged by the anchor of the Hong Kong-registered container ship Newnew Polar Bear. In November of the same year, the Chinese ship Yi Peng 3 was accused of cutting a pair of data cables off the coast of Sweden. Several other underwater cables under the Baltic Sea were also severed last year.
Finland and Sweden have abandoned their decades-long policy of non-military action and joined NATO after the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out. In January this year, the NATO military alliance deployed forces to monitor the Baltic Sea to respond to suspected sabotage incidents.
