Around midnight on February 23, Eulalio Bravo, a marine electrician, was dozing in his rack aboard the San Ramon, an oil tanker anchored off the coast of Venezuela.
FILE PHOTO: The oil tanker San Roman is seen anchored at Pozuelos Bay, in Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela July 16, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos Landaeta
After an investigation of the Herrera killing by forensic police at the nearby port of Puerto La Cruz, a state court in March ordered the arrest of three sailors from the Venezuelan Navy and four soldiers from the National Guard. Further down the government payroll, police and military officials have grown infamous for theft and violence. Last week, a United Nations report said the country’s security forces have systematically committed extrajudicial killings, torture and other human rights abuses, likely under orders from senior government officials.
The San Ramon’s crew, who hailed mostly from Colombia, told Reuters they knew their voyage, a nine-month odyssey that began in Guyana in July 2019, could be problematic. Shipping data reviewed by Reuters indicate that its Automatic Identification System, a device that transmits a vessel’s location and is mandatory under international maritime rules, was disengaged as it approached Venezuela. Loading schedules for Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state-owned oil company and the only legal supplier there, don’t mention any cargo intended for the San Ramon.
Either way, the vessel’s problems were compounded by the failings of Venezuela’s economy, its shipping industry and its maritime and defense agencies. In ports and dockyards, where decrepit vessels bob unattended and container lots sit empty, some workers have taken to stealing what little cargo comes through. In March, intelligence agents arrested the head of PDVSA’s maritime unit, along with 37 other employees, for allegedly trafficking fuel.
“From the moment they boarded, the military started planning what to do with us,” Bravo told Reuters.On January 31, 2019, a rusty, 75-meter tanker anchored off Manzanillo, Mexico, set a destination for Venezuela, shipping data show. Ravendranauth spent the previous decade ferrying malt beer and other goods from Venezuela to Guyana, according to records compiled by Import Genius, a company that tracks import and export data. Because Venezuela provides generous subsidies for food and other essentials, many goods could be bought there cheaply and sold at a steep markup abroad.
Ravendranauth agreed to the deal. He focused on administration, he said, and holds no financial stake in the company. “I’m just like the front person here,” he told Reuters. On August 7, he anchored in Pozuelos Bay, eight miles from the port, and alerted the port authority of the ship’s position. That evening, a Venezuelan Navy patrol boat pulled alongside. Reuters couldn’t determine whether the patrol was responding to Herrera’s call or whether it had approached the San Ramon on its own.
When the mariners returned to their cabins, items including a costly GPS tracker were gone. Orobio said his phone was missing, along with the equivalent of about $25 in Colombian pesos, vanished from his wallet.To pass the time, and while the accused awaited a court hearing, they worked to maintain and fix the ship. Three other mariners, local technicians, joined the crew to help with repairs.
Gianfranco Cultrera, the Puerto La Cruz attorney who represented the men, declined to comment, saying he wasn’t authorized by the San Ramon’s owners to speak about the case.The Venezuelan Navy rotated guards on the ship and appointed Edgard Amundarain, a legal officer, to be its liaison, the crew said. He visited regularly, slept on board, and gradually endeared himself to Herrera and the crew, dining and playing dominoes with them.
Reuters couldn’t reach Amundarain for comment or identify a lawyer for him. It isn’t clear whether he and the other defendants charged in relation to the killing have entered a plea. Edgar, his father, in a Facebook message said he was “worried” about his son’s arrest but didn’t answer further questions.
On February 23, the mariners relaxed and enjoyed a Sunday barbecue. They closed off the gangway, as usual, at 7 p.m. Most of the crew returned to their cabins. Midnight was when Herrera generally left his stateroom for a nightly check of the vessel. The crew told Reuters they heard the assailants encounter the captain and force him back toward his cabin. The boatswain, who spoke on condition that Reuters identify him only by his first name, Dagoberto, said he glimpsed the attackers through his door.Dagoberto, Orobio and Bravo heard someone shout for the first mate to hand over his money.
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