Superyacht Amadea: US wins latest legal battle to seize Russian yacht in Fiji

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

US wins latest legal battle to seize Russian yacht in Fiji

By NICK PERRY
May 27, 2022

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The United States on Friday won the latest round of a legal battle to seize a $325-million Russian-owned superyacht in Fiji, with the case now appearing headed for the Pacific nation’s top court.

The case has highlighted the thorny legal ground the U.S. finds itself on as it tries to seize assets of Russian oligarchs around the world. Those intentions are welcomed by many governments and citizens who oppose the war in Ukraine, but some actions are raising questions about how far U.S. jurisdiction extends.

Fiji’s Court of Appeal on Friday dismissed an appeal by Feizal Haniff, who represents the company that legally owns the superyacht Amadea. Haniff had argued the U.S. had no jurisdiction under Fiji’s mutual assistance laws to seize the vessel, at least until a court sorted out who really owned the Amadea.

Haniff said he now plans to take the case to Fiji’s Supreme Court and will apply for a court order to stop U.S. agents sailing the Amadea from Fiji before the appeal is heard.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-new-zealand-fiji-a6ec81d0ce055648fd07f2df0aa93a9c


FILE - The superyacht Amadea is docked at the Queens Wharf in Lautoka, Fiji, on April 15 2022. On May 5, five U.S. federal agents boarded the massive Russian-owned superyacht Amadea that was berthed in Lautoka harbor in Fiji in a case that is highlighting the thorny legal ground the U.S. is finding itself on as it tries to seize assets of Russian oligarchs around the world. (Leon Lord/Fiji Sun via AP, File)

[COL Mustard]

1. I work for the wrong Federal department

I would have gladly volunteered to be one of those five Federal agents who had to go to Fiji to seize that yacht! 😀

[2naSalit]

2. File that in the...

What was I thinking? Dept. I wanted to live in the woods so I went with agencies that featured such conditions but they don't pay much and you have to deal with tourists a lot.

And to think...

Just look at that thing!

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

3. The crew of a $300 million yacht linked to a Russian oligarch is 'refusing to sail'

with US officials trying to seize it, report says

The crew of a $300 million superyacht linked to a sanctioned Russian oligarch is "refusing to sail" with US authorities who are attempting to seize the vessel, according to court documents obtained by CBS News.

For weeks, US officials have struggled to seize the Amadea, a luxury superyacht docked in Fiji that the Justice Department says is owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov. The lengthy legal process was further complicated on May 7, when the ship's crew declined to aid US authorities on the ship's departing voyage, CBS reported.

The reasoning behind the crew's refusal was two-fold, according to CBS' reporting based on a sworn affidavit from the ship's British captain, John Walsh.

The first is that the crew members are no longer being paid to sail the Amadea because the owner's funds have been frozen. On top of that, the crew is worried that breaching its employment contract by working with US law enforcement could ruin their professional reputation, the report says.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/the-crew-of-a-300-million-yacht-linked-to-a-russian-oligarch-is-refusing-to-sail-with-us-officials-trying-to-seize-it-report-says/ar-AAXPRaq