For the seafarers, this can be a perilous business. Both the IRGC and pirates pose a menace, and ships often carry large sums of money in case either one needs to be paid off. Indrajeet Rathod, 30, who worked on a ship smuggling diesel to Yemen from 2017 through 2020, said his vessel carried about $10,000 for bribes. Thakur said the captain of his ship usually had $50,000.
