Russian Captain & Crew Charged For Damaging Undersea Cable Between Finland & Estonia

A Russian captain and an Azerbaijani crew member of a cargo ship named Fitburg have been found guilty of damaging two underwater telecommunications cables connecting Finland and Estonia.

They have been charged with “aggravated criminal mischief” and “aggravated interference with telecommunications,” Finland’s National Prosecution Authority stated.

The agency added that two other officers of the ship also seem to be involved; however, the decision to press charges against them or not will be taken later, depending on the evidence.

The incident unfolded on December 31, 2025, New Year’s Eve, when Fitburg was sailing from Russia to Israel.

It was ordered to halt and boarded by Finnish authorities after suspicions that it had intentionally dropped anchor, damaging the undersea cables in the Gulf of Finland.

According to investigators, the captain and the crew member deliberately cut the cables and tried to damage 8 others by dragging the anchor across the seabed for 130 km or 80 miles before Finnish authorities ordered them to stop.

This caused “significant immediate damage” and posed “a serious risk to the functioning of telecommunications, electricity and gas networks in Finland”, the investigators added.

The defendants have denied the allegations, arguing that the incident happened within Estonia’s exclusive economic zone and Finland does not have legal jurisdiction as the cables were damaged outside its territorial waters.