Russia says it has found a missing cargo ship off the Cape Verde Islands, ending a saga that has baffled maritime authorities.

The fate of the bulk carrier Artic sea has been shrouded in mystery since it went missing two weeks ago. Russia’s Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said the 4000 tonne vessel had been located and its crew were safe and well. They have now been transferred to a Russian navy ship but no details were given of how the Artic sea was found, or why it vanished as it made its way to Algeria. The disappearance led to a range of hypotheses ranging from pirates, to spies to a mafia dispute. The Finnish vessel and its Russian crew were hi-jacked off Sweden on July 24 then freed. Four days later the ship, which was carrying 1.3 million euros worth of timber, lost radio contact as it passed through the English channel. That led to the Kremlin scrambling warships and submarines to scour the Atlantic.More about: Russia

Copyright © 2012 euronews