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Ads promising a cash reward for information about a “shadow fleet” tanker have appeared on LinkedIn, according to a report by the industry publication Seatrade Maritime, which first drew attention to the posts.
In the ads, published by an account using the name Omra EX-VANI, a reward of €500,000 is offered for information about the VLCC Omra (IMO 9264881). The author is seeking “any verified information regarding the current position of this ship.” An email address and a phone number registered in India are provided.
The tanker in question previously bore the name Vani. According to data from the Equasis information system, the vessel sails under a false Guyanese flag. Pole Star Global’s PurpleTrac database indicates that, as of February 2026, Omra is sailing under the flag of the Comoros Islands, not Guyana. In the photographs published on LinkedIn, the vessel still bears the name Vani, sailing under the flag of San Marino with a black-painted hull. The notice adds that “the vessel may have been repainted a different color.”
Omra, then known as the Vani, was added to U.S. sanctions lists in July 2025 along with its owner, the Marshall Islands-based company Avani Lines. Omra is involved in the trade in Iranian oil and was seen in Iranian waters on Jan. 23 during bunkering. According to Pole Star Global, Omra’s last known location was recorded on Feb. 17 off the coast of Malaysia’s Johor state, where “shadow fleet” tankers often carry out ship-to-ship crude oil transfers.