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

Fiji's High Court on Tuesday dominated that a huge Russian-owned yacht could be seized by U.S. authorities.

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

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

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

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in line with local stories and the maritime analytics website Marine Visitors. Soon after, a federal decide permitted a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's prime prosecutor moved to prevent the ship from leaving.

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

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

Legislation passed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would allow the U.S. to promote the yacht and different properties worth more than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs with the intention to fund the Ukrainian warfare effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has yet to move the Senate.

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

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