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

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

American and Fijian officials 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 the United States, 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, mentioned it's not owned by Kerimov. As a substitute, he argued in courtroom that corporate paperwork traces the ship's ownership 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 choice.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in keeping with native experiences and the maritime analytics website Marine Traffic. Quickly after, a federal choose accepted a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's top prosecutor moved to prevent the ship from leaving.

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

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 passed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would permit the U.S. to promote the yacht and different properties value more than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs with a purpose to fund the Ukrainian war effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has yet to go the Senate.

"We'll seize their yachts, their luxury homes and other ill-begotten beneficial properties," Biden said on April 28 on the White House.

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