The United States has filed a complaint in federal court in Manhattan seeking the forfeiture of a $300 million superyacht owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, who is under U.S. sanctions. The 348-foot yacht, named Amadea, was seized by authorities in Fiji in May 2022. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that Kerimov violated sanctions by making hundreds of millions of dollars in maintenance payments through U.S. financial institutions.

Kerimov, who has a net worth of $10.7 billion according to Forbes, has been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2014 and 2018 for his involvement in Russia’s activities in Syria and Ukraine. These sanctions prohibit Kerimov from accessing the U.S. financial system.

The U.S. prosecutors claim that Kerimov purchased the Amadea in 2021 and used U.S. financial institutions to make maintenance payments, which is a violation of the sanctions. The yacht is currently docked in San Diego.

The judicial process for the forfeiture of the yacht could be lengthy, with the United States seeking ownership of the yacht and potentially auctioning it. The proceeds from the auction would then be transferred to Ukraine. The owners of the yacht will have the opportunity to contest the claim in court.

Kerimov has not yet commented on the matter. However, lawyers for the yacht’s owner, Millemarin Investments, previously stated in a Fiji court that the Amadea is not owned by Kerimov but by Eduard Khudainatov, the former chief of Rosneft. Khudainatov, who is not named in the complaint, has not been sanctioned.

U.S. prosecutors also allege that a transaction in September 2021, which transferred ownership of the Amadea from Millemarin to a newly incorporated company called Errigan Marine, was designed to make it appear that the yacht was owned by Evgeny Kochman, the president of sanctioned yacht broker Imperial Yachts. However, prosecutors claim that Kochman was only a “straw owner.”

A spokesperson for Khudainatov stated that the vessel was “unlawfully seized” by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The United States has been increasing its sanctions enforcement against individuals connected to Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to Moscow’s actions in Ukraine. The seizure of the Amadea and the filing of the complaint against Kerimov are part of these efforts.

In conclusion, the United States has initiated legal proceedings to seek the forfeiture of a $300 million superyacht owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, who is under U.S. sanctions. The yacht was seized by authorities in Fiji and is currently docked in San Diego. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that Kerimov violated sanctions by using U.S. financial institutions to make maintenance payments. The judicial process could result in the auction of the yacht and the transfer of proceeds to Ukraine.