Courtroom in Fiji approves U.S. warrant to grab Russian-owned mega-yacht

Fiji's High Court docket on Tuesday ruled that a huge Russian-owned yacht can 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 the US, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

But an lawyer who represents Millemarin Investments, the company the $325 million ship is registered to, stated it is not owned by Kerimov. As an alternative, he argued in courtroom that corporate 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 company intends to enchantment Tuesday's resolution.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in keeping with local reports and the maritime analytics website Marine Visitors. Quickly after, a federal choose approved 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 couldn't immediately be reached for remark. 

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 passed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would enable the U.S. to sell the yacht and different properties price greater than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs as a way to fund the Ukrainian conflict effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has but to go the Senate.

"We'll seize their yachts, their luxurious properties and different ill-begotten beneficial properties," Biden mentioned on April 28 on the White Home.

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