Courtroom in Fiji approves U.S. warrant to seize Russian-owned mega-yacht

Fiji's Excessive Court docket on Tuesday ruled that a huge Russian-owned yacht can be seized by U.S. authorities.

American and Fijian officials claim the Cayman Islands-flagged Amadea is the property of Suleiman Kerimov, an oligarch who built his fortune on gold mining. Kerimov was sanctioned in March by america, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

But an attorney who represents Millemarin Investments, the corporate the $325 million ship is registered to, said it's not owned by Kerimov. As an alternative, he argued in court that company paperwork traces the ship's ownership to Eduard Khudainatov, a former government at Russia's state-owned Rosneft oil firm who has not been sanctioned. 

Kerimov and Khudainatov could not be reached for remark. The company intends to appeal Tuesday's choice.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, based on local reports and the maritime analytics web site Marine Site visitors. Quickly after, a federal judge approved a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's top prosecutor moved to forestall the ship from leaving.

The Department of Justice could not instantly be reached for comment. 

On April 4, the agency announced that Spanish authorities had assisted it in seizing one other Russian yacht, the $90 million Tango, which was owned by Viktor Vekselberg, the owner of the Russian conglomerate Renova Group.

Legislation handed by the House of Representatives on April 27 would allow the U.S. to sell the yacht and other properties worth greater than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs with the intention to fund the Ukrainian conflict effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has but to move the Senate.

"We're going to seize their yachts, their luxurious homes and other ill-begotten gains," Biden said on April 28 at the White House.

Graham Kates is an investigative reporter overlaying criminal justice, privateness points and data safety for CBS News Digital. Contact Graham at KatesG@cbsnews.com or grahamkates@protonmail.com