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

Fiji's Excessive Court on Tuesday ruled that a massive Russian-owned yacht may 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 america, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

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

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

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in accordance with local reviews and the maritime analytics website Marine Visitors. Quickly after, a federal choose permitted a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's prime prosecutor moved to stop the ship from leaving.

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

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

Legislation handed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would permit the U.S. to sell the yacht and different properties worth more than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs with a purpose to fund the Ukrainian war effort. President Joe Biden helps the invoice, which has but to pass the Senate.

"We're going to seize their yachts, their luxury houses and different ill-begotten features," Biden mentioned on April 28 at the White House.

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