Russian ship carrying stolen Ukrainian grain arrives in Turkey
4.05.2026 - 12:21
The sanctioned ship Leonid Pestrikov under the Russian flag, carrying stolen grain, has entered the Turkish port of Samsun.
This was reported by Kateryna Yaresko, a journalist for the SeaKrime project of the Peacemaker Center.
According to her, “Leonid Pestrikov” (IMO:9922122) loaded 7602.26 tons of wheat in occupied Mariupol from April 22 to 28 and arrived in the Turkish port of Samsun.
“The documents were issued in the Russian port of Temryuk, where the loaded ship entered to close the border. These are fake documents, because the loading took place in the occupied port of Mariupol,” Yaresko emphasized.
The Defense Intelligence of the MoD War&Sanctions portal notes that in April 2023, the US imposed sanctions on the ship, and in November 2025, Ukraine imposed sanctions.
As previously reported by USM, Ukraine is forming a system to counter the shadow grain fleet of the Russian Federation. Kyiv is strengthening coordination of sanctions with international partners by analogy with the fight against the “shadow” oil fleet.
