The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has recovered a large anchor next to the site where a gas pipeline was damaged in the early hours of the morning on Sunday 8 October.
The Balticconnector pipeline is located in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Estonia.
In the immediate aftermath of the damage to the pipeline and subsequent gas leak, Finnish authorities stated that the incident was likely the result of "external activity".
In a press conference on Tuesday evening, an NBI spokesperson revealed that a wide drag mark was found on the seabed on one side of the damaged pipeline, and a narrow drag mark was found on the other side — which continues to the east for several kilometers.
The NBI had previously stated that it was investigating the movements of the NewNew Polar Bear, a Hong Kong flagged ship owned by a Chinese firm, which coincided with the time and place the pipeline was damaged.
Maritime traffic data showed that the vessel crossed the Balticconnector pipeline at the very moment a loud noise was registered in the area of the pipeline.
A photograph of the NewNew Polar Bear vessel docked in the port of St Petersburg appeared on the Russian Port News website on 9 October — one day after the damage to the pipeline occurred. The photograph began to arouse suspicion soon afterwards because the ship's leftside anchor chains were evident on the quay side, even though the vessel was moored to the quay.
A preliminary probe of the seabed by Finnish investigators led to the discovery of a large object, which once it was raised to the surface was revealed to be a ship's anchor.
The next stage of the investigation will seek to determine whether the damage to the pipeline was intentional or not, the NBI said at the Tuesday evening press conference.
China's foreign ministry has called on Finland to investigate the incident "objectively, fairly and professionally."
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