US Coast Guard Seizes Second Oil Tanker Off Venezuela in 'Lightning Strike' Operation

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed on Saturday that the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela in a pre-dawn operation on Dec. 20.

Noem wrote on X that the action was conducted "in a pre-dawn action early this morning on Dec. 20," saying the Coast Guard acted "with the support of the Department [of Defense]" to apprehend a vessel last docked in Venezuela. "The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund narco-terrorism in the region," she wrote. "We will find you, and we will stop you."

The Department of Homeland Security said in a separate post on X that a "lightning strike operation" was executed that morning to seize the Motor Tanker Centuries, which DHS described as "suspected of carrying oil subject to U.S. sanctions." DHS did not immediately clarify whether authorities obtained a warrant or whether the U.S. intends to retain oil recovered from the vessel.

Two U.S. officials told NBC News the Coast Guard led the mission, with U.S. military helicopters providing support by inserting Coast Guard personnel onto the vessel and conducting aerial observation. Reuters first reported the action.

According to a source familiar with U.S. sanctions lists, the Motor Tanker Centuries does not currently appear on a U.S. list of sanctioned vessels. Officials have described the cargo as "sanctioned oil," but public confirmation of the vessel's legal status and any warrant has not been released.

Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello condemned the seizure in an Instagram post, calling it theft and alleging the vessel's crew had been forcibly removed. "The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela denounces and rejects the theft and hijacking of a new private vessel transporting Venezuelan oil, as well as the forced disappearance of its crew," Cabello wrote.

This interception follows last week's U.S. interdiction of a large, previously sanctioned tanker known as the Skipper (identified by Treasury as the Adisa). U.S. officials say that vessel is tied to a sanctions-evasion network that moved Iranian oil and generated revenue for Hezbollah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. After that seizure, Attorney General Pam Bondi said authorities had "executed a seizure warrant" and that the ship had been sanctioned by the United States.

The Trump administration has since added sanctions on several vessels believed to be carrying Venezuelan oil and announced measures to tighten pressure on shipments to and from Venezuela, including an announced "blockade" of sanctioned tankers. Reports tied to those operations say the campaign has led to a number of maritime incidents, which some sources allege resulted in casualties; those claims remain subject to ongoing scrutiny and verification by congressional and international bodies.

At this stage, U.S. officials have released limited public details. The White House and DHS did not immediately provide further comment on whether the oil aboard the Motor Tanker Centuries will be retained or on any legal paperwork supporting the seizure.