The 38-Foot Military Prototype Ghost Faces Maritime Arrest in Portland Boatyard
A Portland boatyard has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court demanding the maritime arrest of Ghost, a stealth military prototype vessel that has racked up more than $30,000 in unpaid storage fees. Portland Yacht Services, based on West Commercial Street, took legal action after a storage agreement expired on Sept. 30 and notices regarding the outstanding balance went unanswered.
Through maritime arrest procedures, a vessel is held until financial obligations are settled, an agreement is reached, or the judiciary intervenes further. Following a judge’s signature on the warrant, any party asserting a stake in the craft has a 14-day window to step forward and 21 days to reply to the legal action. Should the owners neglect to submit a formal statement of interest, the craft might be put on the block to clear the debt owed to Portland Yacht Services.
Inside the Design of the Ghost Prototype
Built in 2009, Ghost is a 38-foot-long prototype constructed of aluminum and stainless steel, making it difficult to find with sonar. Its super-cavitating hull enables the craft to achieve maximum velocity across turbulent waves by rising clear of the water’s surface.
The vessel was designed in a hangar at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery by Gregory Sancoff, who previously made millions from building and selling medical technology companies. Juliet Marine Systems began as an 18-person startup with $15 million invested in the project. Initially designed as a manned vessel for covert insertion or extraction missions, the startup faced unsuccessful efforts to secure a U.S. military contract. Sancoff stated in a 2014 Bloomberg Businessweek article that the vessel could get into denied-access ocean areas, loiter for 30 days with fuel on board, listen to cellphone conversations, and launch operations undetected.
During the early months of 2025, Juliet Marine Systems joined forces with General Dynamics to evaluate Ghost functioning as an uncrewed or flexibly crewed craft, conducting trials locally in Portland.
Juliet Marine Systems Owes Storage Fees for Ghost
According to the lawsuit, Ghost was first brought to Portland Yacht Services three years ago and remained stored there under several agreements. The most recent agreement ran from July 1 through Sept. 30. It stipulated that if both sides failed to execute a new agreement by Sept. 30, the vessel would incur additional storage fees of $1,087 per day.
The ship’s New Hampshire-based owner, Juliet Marine Systems, now owes Portland Yacht Services more than $30,000. Gregory Sancoff stated Tuesday that Juliet Marine Systems has dissolved as a corporation and that he resigned as president months ago. He declined to comment further.
Grayson Szczepaniak, an attorney at Archipelago Law representing Portland Yacht Services, also declined to comment on the suit. Attempts to reach General Dynamics were not immediately successful.
