Court in Fiji approves U.S. warrant to grab Russian-owned mega-yacht

Fiji's Excessive Courtroom on Tuesday ruled that a large Russian-owned yacht will be seized by U.S. authorities.

American and Fijian officers 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 the USA, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

However an legal professional who represents Millemarin Investments, the company the $325 million ship is registered to, mentioned it is not owned by Kerimov. Instead, he argued in court that corporate paperwork traces the ship's possession to Eduard Khudainatov, a former executive at Russia's state-owned Rosneft oil firm who has not been sanctioned. 

Kerimov and Khudainatov couldn't be reached for remark. The corporate intends to appeal Tuesday's determination.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in accordance with native reviews and the maritime analytics web site Marine Traffic. Soon after, a federal decide authorized a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's top prosecutor moved to stop the ship from leaving.

The Division of Justice couldn't immediately be reached for comment. 

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

Laws passed by the Home 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 to be able to fund the Ukrainian struggle effort. President Joe Biden supports the invoice, which has but to pass the Senate.

"We'll seize their yachts, their luxurious homes and different ill-begotten positive aspects," Biden mentioned on April 28 at the White Home.

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