[1] The ship was built in 1969 in Norway and has gone by many names, including: Vesturvón, Arctic Ranger, Rubin, Typhoon I, Kuko, and Wuhan N4.
[3] From December 17, 2014, to April 6, 2015, two Sea Shepherd vessels, Bob Barker and the Age of Union, as part of "Operation Icefish",[4] pursued the renegade trawler Thunder for 10,000 miles from Antarctic waters where it was illegally fishing for Patagonian toothfish to where Thunder was scuttled in the waters of São Tomé and Príncipe at 00°19′N 005°25′E / 0.317°N 5.417°E / 0.317; 5.417.
[5][6] The ship was first intercepted on December 17, 2014, at 62°15′S 81°24′E / 62.250°S 81.400°E / -62.250; 81.400, inside the CCAMLR (Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources) region of management while deploying illegal gillnets.
[8] At the time of her sinking, the crew consisted of 30 Indonesians and 10 officers from Spain, Chile, and Portugal, who were turned over to the authorities in São Tomé and Príncipe.
[9] Interpol believes that the vessel was part of a fleet of six operating through shell corporations under Vidal Armadores, a company based in Spain.