By Verity News Editorial Board
The strange ship, IB Atlantic, is 41 years old as of 2026. It was built since 1985.
Over 178,000 inhabitants of Grand Cape Mount County appear stunned once more by another ‘ghost’ ship in in York Island, Tewor District. This time around, it is not the Panama-flagged vessel named Tamaya 1, which mysteriously washed ashore, without any crew member, in Grand Cape Mount County on May 3, 2016.
This time around, it is a Comoros-flagged vessel, IB Atlantic IV Moroni, that has suddenly entered into the territorial waters and exclusive economic zone of Liberia. Residents and local security agents say ‘IB Atlantic’ was spotted in York Island almost a week ago, but attempts by local security agents to access it have since failed. As State security agents investigate the strange ship that has mysteriously sailed into the waters of Liberia, Liberians have begun raising concerns about its identity, origin, and purpose.
Verity News launched an initial investigation, and here’s what we found about ‘IB Atlantic IV Moroni’ that is currently operating under the flag of Comoros, a Southeastern African Island country:
1) Vessel Name: IB ATLANTIC IV
2) Vessel type: Dry bulk / Mini bulkers 1
3) IMO number: 8502133
4) MMSI: 620999913
5) Callsign: D6A3912
6) Flag: Comoros
7) Year built: 1985
8)Draft (summer): 3.941 meters
9) Deadweight (DWT): 2,362 tonnes
10) Length overall (LOA): 88 meters
11) Width (beam): 11 meters
The 41-year-old ‘ghost’ vessel last departed Guinea Bissau on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, according to AIS data. The data on IB Atlantic was sourced from Maritime Optima.
Liberians are now hoping to get full briefing from the Ministry of Justice pertinent to the sudden presence of the ‘ghost’ cargo ship in the waters of Liberia. What is this old, rusty vessel doing here? How did it get here? Could this be an attempt by foreigners to use Liberia’s shores as a shipyard for old, rusty, retired, abandoned, and wrecked vessels? First it was Tamaya. Now, it is IB Atlantic.
Does the Coast Guard of Liberia have the manpower, technology, logistics, and financial resources to effectively man and monitor the 350-mile coastlines of Liberia? If not, this papers calls on the national government to invest more in coastal and maritime security through increased budgetary appropriations.
