The tanker, the Olina, is the fifth to be boarded or seized by U.S. forces in recent weeks as part of an effort to control Venezuela’s oil exports.

US forces have seized another tanker in the Caribbean Sea, officials said, as Washington continues its efforts to control exports of Venezuelan oil. "Once again, our joint interagency forces sent a clear message this morning: 'there is no safe haven for criminals,

The White House said the crew on the Marinera, which had been re-flagged as a Russian vessel, "will be brought to the United States for such prosecution if necessary."

Two U.S. officials confirmed to CBS News that the Coast Guard, supported by the Navy, were the process of seizing the Olina oil tanker.

U.S. forces boarded another oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea on Friday, the U.S. military said, as the Trump administration targets sanctioned tankers traveling to and from Venezuela as part of a broader effort to take control of the South American country's oil.

The Olina was seized overnight in the Caribbean Sea, the U.S. military said Friday. The ship "had departed Venezuela attempting to evade U.S. forces," DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said.

The United States seized another oil tanker overnight in the Caribbean Sea, the fifth vessel taken in recent weeks as the Trump Administration intensifies a sweeping effort to choke off Venezuela’s oil exports and assert control over a maritime trade it says is riddled with sanctions evaders.

President Donald Trump's administration is seeking to assert its control over Venezuelan oil, seizing two sanctioned tankers transporting petroleum and announcing plans to relax some sanctions so the U.

The U.S. Coast Guard intercepted the sanctioned tanker Olina in waters near Venezuela.

Chevron Corp., the sole Western supermajor permitted to pump Venezuelan oil, is loading tankers at the fastest pace in seven months as the US government moves to control the Latin American nation’s crude riches.