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

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

American and Fijian officials claim 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 america, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

However an attorney who represents Millemarin Investments, the company the $325 million ship is registered to, stated it isn't owned by Kerimov. As an alternative, he argued in courtroom that corporate paperwork traces the ship's ownership to Eduard Khudainatov, a former government at Russia's state-owned Rosneft oil company who has not been sanctioned. 

Kerimov and Khudainatov couldn't be reached for remark. The corporate intends to appeal Tuesday's decision.

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in keeping with local experiences and the maritime analytics web site Marine Visitors. Soon after, a federal judge accredited a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's prime prosecutor moved to forestall the ship from leaving.

The Division of Justice couldn't instantly be reached for comment. 

On April 4, the agency 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 allow the U.S. to sell the yacht and different properties value more than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs with the intention to fund the Ukrainian struggle effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has but to go the Senate.

"We're going to seize their yachts, their luxury homes and different ill-begotten gains," Biden stated on April 28 at the White House.

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