Tugboat accused of massive February Caribbean oil spill arrested on separate charges in Angola

Nearly four months after Tobago suffered one of its worst environmental disasters, the vessel allegedly involved was found thousands of miles away on another continent and arrested on separate charges.

On the morning of February 7, local authorities detected an oil slick from a capsized ship off the west coast of Tobago. The slick quickly hit the southwest coast of the Caribbean island and a national state of emergency was declared.

The tugboat and barge involved were ultimately identified as the Solo Creed and the Gulf Stream, both with a history of towing Venezuelan oil. The barge's final, fateful voyage saw it transporting some 35,000 barrels of oil for a journey that was to end in Guyana, but along the way the barge encountered difficulties.

After the 48-year-old barge capsized off the coast of Tobago, the oil slick spread hundreds of kilometers west and reached the east coast of the Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire, then Aruba and Grenada. In total, the cost of cleaning up the oil spill is estimated at $23.5 million so far.

In an exclusive investigation conducted by the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian and Bellingcat, a Dutch journalism group, the Solo Creed has now been found. It turns out that the tugboat was arrested on May 11 in Angola for unauthorized violation of the offshore oil security perimeter of oil extraction blocks 17 and 18 claimed by the African nation. The ship is currently anchored in the Bay of Luanda.

Stuart Young, Trinidad and Tobago's energy minister, has contacted his Angolan counterparts and is assessing the new information revealed.

The tugboat and barge had no insurance when they ran into trouble in February, with their ownership also initially shrouded in mystery. It has since emerged that Abraham Olalekan, from Nigeria, was the owner of the tug and barge.