A Helsinki court has sentenced the Russian captain of the cargo ship Fitburg to three and a half years in prison and its boatswain to two years and ten months over damage to two telecommunications cables in Finland.
The court found that the vessel dragged its anchor along the seabed for approximately 70 nautical miles in the Gulf of Finland, damaging the two cables. The Helsinki District Court handed down the sentences on 5 November 2026 and ordered both men’s immediate detention.
The Fitburg, flying the flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, was sailing from St Petersburg to Israel when the incident occurred on the morning of 31 December 2025.
Both men denied the allegations. The captain’s lawyer has announced plans to appeal, while the boatswain had not yet decided whether to challenge the verdict.
The court’s ruling centred on the defendants’ responsibility for allowing the vessel to sail with its anchor chain dragging along the seabed.
