Should anyone ask, the high seas are a dangerous place

This is a fascinating article about repossessing 100m long ships.

This repo man drives off with ocean freighters – Los Angeles Times

“I do not want my face seen,” he added.Such tactics were employed in April 1999, when Hardberger was asked to extract a 280-foot cargo ship that had put in for repairs at Drapetsona, a part of the
Greek port of Piraeus. “It’s a place,” he says, “where ship names are repainted quickly.”

The small freighter was Hungarian and, despite the fall of the Soviet Union, was still equipped with a commissar’s office. It contained a secret radio room and the complete works of Lenin.

When the repair company charged four times the agreed-upon price to fix a huge dent in the stern, Hardberger said, the owner refused to pay. Port officials then denied the vessel a clearance to leave.