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 may 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 constructed 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, said it is not owned by Kerimov. As a substitute, he argued in court that corporate paperwork traces the ship's possession to Eduard Khudainatov, a former govt at Russia's state-owned Rosneft oil company who has not been sanctioned. 

Kerimov and Khudainatov could not be reached for comment. The corporate intends to appeal Tuesday's determination.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in keeping with native reviews and the maritime analytics website Marine Site visitors. Soon after, a federal judge accredited 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 could not immediately be reached for comment. 

On April 4, the agency 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.

Legislation handed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would enable the U.S. to sell the yacht and other properties value more than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs with the intention to fund the Ukrainian struggle effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has yet to go the Senate.

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

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