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

Fiji's Excessive Courtroom on Tuesday ruled that a huge Russian-owned yacht could 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 United States, 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, mentioned it isn't owned by Kerimov. As a substitute, he argued in court that company paperwork traces the ship's ownership to Eduard Khudainatov, a former govt 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 determination.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in accordance with native stories and the maritime analytics web site Marine Traffic. Quickly after, a federal decide authorized 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 immediately be reached for comment. 

On April 4, the company 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 passed by the House of Representatives on April 27 would enable the U.S. to promote the yacht and other properties worth more than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs as a way to fund the Ukrainian conflict effort. President Joe Biden supports the invoice, which has but to pass the Senate.

"We will seize their yachts, their luxury houses and other ill-begotten positive aspects," Biden mentioned on April 28 on the White House.

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