Judicial review sought over detention of tanker captain held in Scottish waters

The Marinera, a Russian-flagged vessel, has been anchored in the Moray Firth in recent days. The tanker was intercepted earlier this month by US forces while travelling through waters between Iceland and Scotland, following what has been described as a pursuit across the Atlantic linked to alleged sanctions breaches involving Venezuela.

A petition for judicial review was lodged at the Court of Session on Monday on behalf of Natia Dzadzama, the wife of the ship’s captain, Avtandil Kalandadze, a Georgian national.

Her solicitor, Aamer Anwar, said the action challenges the “lawfulness of the detention” of Mr Kalandadze, who he said had been held by the US navy aboard the Marinera since 7 January while the vessel has been within Scottish waters.

Mr Anwar said Ms Dzadzama was “reasonably concerned” about her husband’s safety and security and was seeking the intervention of the Court of Session to protect his legal rights. The petition claims Mr Kalandadze is being held in “legal limbo”, without access to a court or tribunal capable of determining the legality of his detention.

Lawyers have sought emergency orders to prevent the tanker and those on board from being removed from the jurisdiction of the Scottish courts, pending a full hearing expected in the coming days.

At a hearing on Monday evening, Lord Young granted an interim interdict in limited form. He ruled that the advocate general for Scotland, the lord advocate and the Scottish ministers – and anyone acting on their behalf – are prohibited from removing the captain and crew from the territorial jurisdiction of the court.

The UK armed forces assisted in the Atlantic operation but did not board the vessel. The tanker had initially been sailing under the flag of Guyana before switching to a Russian flag.