Russians’ journey in the Indian Ocean end in custody   |19 January 2024

The four Russians during the press conference (Photo: Neil Sirame)

In their quest for enjoyment, four Russians, namely skipper Mikhail Kharko and crew members Maksim Scherbakov, Artem Savchenko and Iouatau Dyak travelled the Indian Ocean in a dinghy reaching Mahé on Wednesday after a stop in the Maldives on New Year’s Day.

The four sailors disembarked at the Marine Charter on Wednesday – 17 days after leaving the Maldives – and they were welcomed by some of the guests. Yesterday, the four Russians gave a press conference at the Yacht Club to local media houses, namely Seychelles NATION, Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) and TéléSesel to share their journey which began in India on December 27, 2023. Hours later they were stopped by the local police.

Speaking to the media, captain Mikhail Kharko said their journey was not easy as there was a lot of wind but they managed to sail through.

He said they were inspired by a friend of theirs who sails around the world in a similar vessel and they therefore challenged themselves to attempt crossing the Indian Ocean.

Captain Kharko added that their food ration for the journey was very critical and they had only dried goods to survive on. He also said that they had to fish for their own consumption when necessary.

He also said they like the warm climate and the turquoise water which cools down the body, before describing the beauty of the Indian Ocean as “simply breathtaking”.

To conclude, the Russian skipper said they did not face any difficulty at sea but the authorities in India questioned them regarding their travel documents. Apart from that, they did not encounter any difficulty when sailing to Mahé. The four sailors also told the media that they expect to leave Seychelles after a week-long rest and that their vessel is expected to be collected by another crew.

Little did the four Russians knew that they were going to run into trouble with the local police hours after having given the press conference. A platoon of police officers stormed their boat, searched it and arrested them.

As yours in writing tried to find out what was happening and took photos of the commotion, his camera was taken away from him and although he gave the police officers his name and for which media house he works, he was brought to the criminal investigation department (CID) at Bois de Rose for questioning.

The reason for that the police explained is because he did not have his press badge on him.

He was soon released without charges.