A Helsinki district court dismissed criminal charges against the captain and two officers of the Cook Islands-flagged oil tanker Eagle S, ruling that Finnish law could not be applied to the alleged undersea cable damage in the Gulf of Finland, reported Saint Petersburg's PortNews.

The court also dismissed related civil claims and ordered the state to pay the defendants' legal costs of about ��95,000. Prosecutors had alleged that the vessel dragged an 11,000-kg anchor for 90 km, severing five cables including the EstLink 2 power interconnector and four telecom lines.

The crew denied wrongdoing, citing a technical fault and adverse weather as the cause of the anchor drop. Finnish authorities boarded and seized the vessel in late December 2024, later releasing it under Border Guard control after completing investigations.

Fingrid reported that EstLink 2 tripped at 12:26 EET on December 25, reducing transfer capacity but maintaining service through backup systems. Estonian grid operator Elering confirmed anchor damage and said repairs would proceed.

Prosecutors estimated repair costs at over ��0 million. The case was one of the first in Europe involving alleged criminal damage to seabed infrastructure.