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

Fiji's Excessive Court on Tuesday dominated that a massive Russian-owned yacht might 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 constructed his fortune on gold mining. Kerimov was sanctioned in March by the US, United Kingdom and European Union in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

However an legal professional who represents Millemarin Investments, the company the $325 million ship is registered to, mentioned it's not owned by Kerimov. As an alternative, he argued in court that company paperwork traces the ship's ownership to Eduard Khudainatov, a former executive at Russia's state-owned Rosneft oil company who has not been sanctioned. 

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

The Amadea berthed in Fiji on April 13, in keeping with native reviews and the maritime analytics web site Marine Visitors. Quickly after, a federal judge authorized a warrant for the ship to be seized and on April 19, Fiji's prime prosecutor moved to stop the ship from leaving.

The Department of Justice could not instantly be reached for remark. 

On April 4, the company introduced that Spanish authorities had assisted it in seizing another Russian yacht, the $90 million Tango, which was owned by Viktor Vekselberg, the proprietor of the Russian conglomerate Renova Group.

Legislation passed by the Home of Representatives on April 27 would enable the U.S. to promote the yacht and different properties worth greater than $2 million seized from Russian oligarchs in order to fund the Ukrainian conflict effort. President Joe Biden supports the bill, which has yet to move the Senate.

"We'll seize their yachts, their luxurious properties and different ill-begotten beneficial properties," Biden stated on April 28 at the White House.

Graham Kates is an investigative reporter overlaying criminal justice, privacy issues and information security for CBS News Digital. Contact Graham at KatesG@cbsnews.com or grahamkates@protonmail.com