The Antigua-Barbuda flagged container ship Paya Lebar has traded both into and back out of the Arabian Gulf between 13 and 28 April according to AIS data from Pole Star Global.

The SeaLead Shipping operated and owned Paya Lebar transited westbound through the Strait of Hormuz westbound into the Gulf on 13 April having been at anchor in Nhava Sheva, India since late March.

While in the Gulf the vessel called at Jebel Ali and Khalifa ports in the UAE and Hamad in Qatar.

The Paya Lebar crossed the Strait of Hormuz eastbound on 28 April currently –  UTC 08:10 hrs on 29 April - passing the approximate location of the US naval blockade in the Arabian Sea as it heads back to Nhava Sheva.

The movements of the Paya Lebar would imply a change in policy by SeaLead which said on 2 March in customer advisory it had halted all transits through the Strait of Hormuz for the safety of its crews, ships, and cargoes.

Related:TT Club extends war risk cover for containers on land in Middle East

In July last year the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)  sanctioned 16 container ships the company had on charter over links with Iran. SeaLead acted to quickly terminate the charters on the 16 vessels and denied it had ties with Iran.

However, in March this year the US Department of Justice filed civil forfeiture complaints seeking to seize $2.4 million in funds allegedly intended for Sea Lead Shipping Pte Ltd and its Indian subsidiary, as part of a broader action targeting more than $15.3 million tied to a sanctions-evasion network linked to Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of a senior adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader.