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

Fiji's High Court docket on Tuesday ruled that a large Russian-owned yacht might 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 constructed his fortune on gold mining. Kerimov was sanctioned in March by the US, 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, stated it isn't owned by Kerimov. As a substitute, he argued in courtroom that company paperwork traces the ship's ownership 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 choice.

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

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

On April 4, the company introduced 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.

Legislation handed by the House of Representatives on April 27 would enable the U.S. to promote the yacht and other properties worth greater than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs so as to fund the Ukrainian conflict effort. President Joe Biden helps the bill, which has yet to move the Senate.

"We'll seize their yachts, their luxurious properties and different ill-begotten gains," Biden stated on April 28 at the White House.

Graham Kates is an investigative reporter masking felony justice, privacy points and knowledge security for CBS Information Digital. Contact Graham at KatesG@cbsnews.com or grahamkates@protonmail.com