The Ukrainian-Russian conflict spilled over into the yachting world this weekend and partially sank a Russian-owned yacht in the Mediterranean.
The Ukrainian chief engineer of the Lady Anastasia—owned by Alexander Mikheev, the CEO of Rosoboronexport, a Russian military weapons supplier—opened two valves on the 156-foot yacht, in an effort to sink her at her dock in Port Adriano, Mallorca.
The 55-year-old engineer, identified as Taras Ostapchuck, was angered when he saw footage of a missile strike a residential building in Kyiv. He said the building looked like one he’d lived in, and he believed the missile was manufactured by his boss’ company. In an act of vengeance, he opened a couple of sea cocks on the $10 million yacht and told his co-workers to get off the ship. The Lady Anastasia did not go to the bottom, but her engine room was flooded, and the yacht was partially sunk.
Ostapchuck did keep safety and environmental responsibility in mind. Before opening the valves, he switched off the electricity and closed the fuel valves to limit pollution.
Ostapchuck had worked aboard the Lady Anastasia for a decade, but that didn’t stop him from trying to sink her. “I don’t regret anything I’ve done,” he told local reporters. When local civil guards showed up to arrest him, he told them, “My boss is a criminal who sells weapons that kill the Ukrainian people.”
He planned to return to the Ukraine via Poland to join the fight against the Russians.
