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The US, on Tuesday won a judicial battle in Fiji to seize a Russian-owned superyacht and immediately took possession of the 325-million-dollar (€304-million) vessel.
Less than two hours after the decision was reached, the ship sailed for the United States. The court judgment was a huge victory for the United States, which has struggled to recover the assets of Russian oligarchs all across the world. While many opponents of the Ukrainian conflict praise these actions, some of them have stretched the limits of American authority abroad.
The Fijian Supreme Court has lifted a stay order that blocked the United States from seizing the superyacht Amadea.
According to Chief Justice Kamal Kumar, the chances of defense counsel bringing an appeal that the Supreme Court would hear were “nil to extremely poor,” based on the circumstances. However, Mr. Kumar admitted that keeping the superyacht berthed in Lautoka harbor was “costing the Fijian government a lot of money.”
Following the court’s verdict, the US removed the motorized vessel within an hour or two, presumably to avoid further legal action against the yacht. US Justice Department spokesman Anthony Coley stated on Twitter that the superyacht had sailed to the US under a new flag. US officials were grateful to Fiji police and prosecutors for their commitment to the rule of law.
According to the Justice Department, the Amadea was confiscated in Fiji, but this turned out to be premature after lawyers filed an appeal. The Amadea, which was linked to Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov by the FBI, was unclear where the US intended to take it at first. According to Fiji Director of Public Prosecutions Christopher Pryde, unresolved questions of money laundering and ownership of the Amadea must be determined in the United States.
In court documents, the FBI linked the Amadea to the Kerimov family, noting their alleged use of code names on board and purchasing items such as a pizza oven and a spa bed.
Task Force KleptoCapture was founded in March to capture Russian oligarchs’ assets to pressure Russia to end the war. Some of the items found aboard the 348-foot-long include a live lobster tank, a hand-painted piano, a swimming pool, and a large helipad.
Millemarin Investments, the paper’s owner, was represented by lawyer Feizal Haniff, who claimed that the owner was a wealthy Russian who, unlike Mr. Kerimov, was not subject to sanctions.
Eduard Khudainatov appeared to be the owner of the paperwork, according to the US, but he was also the legal owner of a second, much larger superyacht, the Scheherazade, which has been linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The US questioned whether Mr. Khudainatov could actually afford two superyachts at more than a billion dollars (£794 million).
The Amadea turned off its transponder immediately after Russia attacked Ukraine, according to court filings, and went from the Caribbean to Mexico via the Panama Canal. The ship then crossed the Pacific to Fiji, covering hundreds of kilometers.
The Justice Department said that paperwork suggesting the Amadea’s destination was Vladivostok or another Russian port was false and that the ship was really destined for Vladivostok or another Russian port.
According to the department, a text message on a crew member’s phone said, “We’re not going to Russia,” followed by a “shush” emoji. According to the US, Mr. Kerimov purchased the Amadea, which is registered in the Cayman Islands, through a series of shell companies last year.
Mr. Kerimov made his fortune by investing in the Russian gold business Polyus; Forbes magazine estimates his net worth at $14.5 billion (£11.5 million). However, after he was caught in France and suspected of money laundering with luggage containing 20 million euros (£17 million), the US sanctioned him for the first time in 2018.
Mr. Khudainatov previously served as the chairman and CEO of Rosneft, Russia’s state-owned oil and gas company.
