When you start looking at the mysteries behind the news we are presented every day it’s easy to begin seeing a mystery or a conspiracy in everything. But even when trying to keep the official and the true accounts of things straight there are some stories that remain odd even years afterward with no real believable explanation – even when accepting the possibility of a conspiracy. And so with that in mind we attempt to see if the official story of what happened in 2009 to the mysterious MV Arctic Sea sinks or swims.
The Arctic Sea was one of several commercial freighters operating in international waters at the time in 2009 just off the coast of Sweden. But in the morning hours of July 24, 2009 something happened aboard that has remained beyond explanation even to this day. No accounts either from authorities or even the crew themselves has been satisfactory in explaining just why the Arctic Sea disappeared, and the vessel has been investigated by several – each coming to their own conclusions about what happened that fateful morning and for the following weeks. But no one knows for sure other than the crew of 15 Russian men just what transpired – and many contend that even they don’t know truly what they were carrying.
That morning accounts say that an inflatable boat with the word “Polis” (Police) emblazoned on the front approached the ship and the crew of the boat boarded the Arctic Sea. This is where accounts diverge quite a bit. The official story states that these mystery men posing as police apprehended the crew and interrogated them. After several hours they departed after searching the ship. But then things got strange. Despite the official story of the hijackers leaving later that morning, the ship continued to communicate via radio as if nothing was wrong. Audio transcripts of the disappearance suggest the ship was operating as normal during this time four days later. But when the ship stopped transmitting its coordinates on the 30th of August, authorities became concerned. A simple telephone call via satellite to the vessel was made the following day (six days after the alleged hijacking) but nothing has been disclosed of the contents of this call aside from its originator the Swedish Police Service. Later they would state that the boarding party had not originated from Sweden at all. When the vessel did not appear in the port, days passed and eventually Interpol raised an alarm stating the ship had likely been hijacked.
Later it would turn up and the official story would be shared with the world. While it rarely made headlines in the US, the story was big news in Europe. Aside from the fact that it doesn’t fit the modus operandi of pirates whatsoever it has officially been declared a hijacking by pirates. After a trial several men were imprisoned for piracy. Still many are wondering how the pirates intended to rob the vessel of its cargo – as it was several thousand tons of lumber – in their small inflatable raft. Instead there has been a great deal of speculation that something else may have been onboard the Arctic Sea. And whatever that secret cargo was, Swedish authorities are encouraging the world to stop talking about it. In 2010 a leaked cable quoted the Senior Spanish prosecutor as saying it was a clear case of “arms trafficking.” Similar reports were around as early as 2009.