WASHINGTON (AP) – A superyacht said by U.S. authorities owned by a Russian oligarch previously authorized for money laundering has been arrested by law enforcement in Fiji. The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Thursday.
The Justice Department said Fiji authorities, acting at the request of the United States, have now issued a search warrant for the freezing of a yacht previously banned from leaving the South Pacific.
U.S. officials say the 348-foot ship was owned by Suleiman Kerimov, a Russian economist and former politician who was punished by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2018 and threatened further censorship by Canada, Europe, Britain and other country. then Russia invaded Ukraine.
Kerimov acquired the property by investing in Russian gold maker Polyus, Forbes magazine estimated his net worth at $ 14.5 billion.
Defense lawyers said the yacht was actually owned by another Russian oligarch.
To support a search warrant on an application, an FBI agent wrote that there were possible reasons to believe that Kerimov has owned Amadea since 2021. The ship, which flies the Cayman Islands flag, shut down automated information system. on February 24, the day Russia began its invasion of Ukraine.
The Ministry of Justice said the removal was coordinated by the KleptoCapture Working Group, which was set up in March to seize the property of Russia’s authorized oligarchs.
In a statement, Attorney General Merrick Garland said the recent seizure “must prove that there is no hidden location for the assets of persons violating U.S. law.” “And there is no hiding place for criminals obstructing the Russian regime.”
The Justice Department said the yacht was now in Lautoka, Fiji.
Source: Huffpost
