Organized fuel smuggling ring busted in Iran: over 6 million liters seized
The vessels were caught carrying more than six million liters of smuggled fuel in the southern waters of the Persian Gulf near Abu Musa Island.
The case, described as one of the most significant in terms of volume and coordination, involved two tankers with a total of 34 foreign crew members.
According to an official statement, the first tanker was found smuggling over 4.25 million liters of fuel. Its captain and two senior officers were each sentenced to five years in prison and fined a total of 4,300 billion rials—three times the value of the seized fuel.
The second tanker’s crew received similar prison terms and were collectively fined more than 2,375 billion rials.
Mojtaba Ghahremani, the Chief Justice of Hormozgan Province clarified that the ships will not be released until the financial penalties are fully paid.
Source: IFP Editorial Staff