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

Fiji's Excessive Court docket on Tuesday dominated that a massive Russian-owned yacht will be seized by U.S. authorities.

American and Fijian officials declare 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 United States, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

But 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 docket that corporate paperwork traces the ship's possession 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, in keeping with native experiences and the maritime analytics website 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 forestall the ship from leaving.

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

On April 4, the company introduced 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 passed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would enable the U.S. to promote the yacht and different properties worth greater than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs in an effort to fund the Ukrainian war effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has but to move the Senate.

"We're going to seize their yachts, their luxurious properties and different ill-begotten features," Biden said on April 28 at the White Home.

Graham Kates is an investigative reporter overlaying felony justice, privateness issues and information security for CBS News Digital. Contact Graham at KatesG@cbsnews.com or grahamkates@protonmail.com