Weird facts but OK

Should you be boarded, or should you be inspected and evidence of crime found at any point- the government of the flag the inspection ship or port was flying will try to determine your country. If they annoy and you will not say- they can and likely will prosecute you under their laws. If your country of citizenship is known- depending on extradition and other arrangements and politics between the nations, they might still try you under their law; or hand you over to your own country where you will be tried for whatever law you broke.

So it is an old trope and a wives tale that you can do anything in international waters, or that you cannot be prosecuted in international waters for a crime. As a matter of fact- it can be WORSE to commit a crime in international waters. Depending on who arrests you for the crime, their laws and prisons may not he as kind or gentle as your home countries. If there is any argument or political battles between the countries over extradition- you can end up spending years jailed for a crime that would have carried a sentence less than the length you spent locked up. Even if you don’t get caught in some extradition battle...

The red tape and arrangements and such will likely mean that you’ll spend longer in jail before you can get a trial than you would have otherwise. You may or may not get some credit for this as “time served,” it depends. AAAND... depending on your own countries laws- if you are tried for a crime and convicted in another country- you could still face a second trial for the same crime, or additional punishment, or some form of continued penalties when and if you return home.

As a matter of fact- the ocean is really big. Ships go missing all the time. How many plane crashes have their been at sea where many nations have searched for weeks or months and not found the wreckage? My point is- international waters are often closely watched by multiple countries- in small part because of this myth- but as a matter of national security and territorial rights. They have to make sure that other nations are respecting the rules. So why go to a place that’s already under scrutiny- but where your presence is somewhat suspicious already- to commit a crime; when there’s a big giant ocean you can use that isn’t being watched so closely?

Regardless of wether it’s a sound strategy or not- you totally CAN be prosecuted for crimes in international waters and it can and may likely be worse than committing a crime in a countries waters or on land.