Fiji court rules US can seize Russian superyacht Amadea
- The 350-foot vessel reportedly belonging to sanctioned oligarch Suleiman Kerimov arrived in Fiji last month from Mexico
- The US has focused on confiscating yachts to put the finances of Russian tycoons under strain in a bid to pressure President Putin over the war in Ukraine
A Fiji court ruled on Tuesday that the United States can seize a Russian-owned superyacht, 21 days after it arrived and was impounded by police, as Washington and its allies press Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
US authorities assert that the luxury vessel, the Amadea, is ultimately owned by Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov, who has been sanctioned by the Washington and the European Union.
Fiji’s High Court granted the order to seize the Amadea, Fiji’s Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said in a statement.
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The order was made after the DPP applied to register a US warrant to seize the yacht, it said.
The vessel’s lawyers, the Haniff Tuitoga law firm, did not respond to a request for comment but media reported that lawyers for the Amadea said they would seek an interim stay to stop the vessel being towed away.
The Amadea arrived in Fiji last month after an 18-day voyage across the Pacific from Mexico.
It was detained by Fiji police and its captain questioned on why it had arrived in Fiji waters without customs clearance.
Fiji’s High Court last month granted a restraining order stopping the Amadea from leaving Fiji until the court had considered the US seizure warrant.
Fiji authorities said they are acting on the US request under Fiji’s Mutual Assistance Criminal Matters Act.
Lawyers for the 350-foot motor yacht’s registered owner, Millemarin Investments, have denied it is ultimately owned by Kerimov.
They told the court it was owned by another Russian oligarch, Eduard Khudainatov, the former president of oil giant Rosneft, who has not been sanctioned, media reported.
Fiji authorities had argued that the court did not need to determine ownership of the vessel, only that it was subject to a US warrant in a money-laundering case.
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The US sanctioned Kerimov, a former Russian politician who made his fortune in gold, in 2018 and 2014 in response to Russia’s actions in Syria and Ukraine.
The US embassy in Suva did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the court ruling.
In a separate task force KleptoCapture case linked to the Pacific, the 255-foot superyacht Tango, alleged to belong to Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg, was impounded by Spanish police on behalf of US authorities in April.
Tango is flagged in the Pacific island nation of the Cook Islands, which said it assisted in the investigation.
A spokesman for the Cook Islands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration said the Cook Islands provided information that allowed investigators to connect the ship with its owner.
