Russian yacht, seized in Fiji by U.S., docks at Honolulu Harbor

A superyacht seized last week in Fiji by U.S. federal agents — as part of an effort by Western governments to confiscate Russian assets and punish oligarchs for their country’s invasion of Ukraine — arrived Thursday morning in Honolulu Harbor.

U.S. officials say the $325 million Amadea belongs to Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov. It made a roughly 3,100-mile journey from Fiji, where the island nation’s Supreme Court on June 7 lifted a stay that had prevented the U.S. from sailing the vessel away from the nation after its registered owner mounted a series of legal challenges.

John Mathews, who works in a downtown-area office looking out at the harbor, watched as the yacht moored at Pier 2C at about 11 a.m. When it backed into the pier, a co-worker looked up the name on the back and quickly learned about the vessel’s origins. “It was amazing to watch it come into harbor,” Mathews said, adding, “That’s what money looks like.”

When word of its arrival got out, some passersby and others headed to nearby Pier 5 to gaze at the 348-foot Amadea, which is considerably larger than the 232-foot cruise liner Star of Hono­lulu, which docks at nearby Aloha Tower.

Janice Nantkes, who was having lunch in the area, said, “I just wanted to see what a $300 million boat looks like.” She said that ultimately she was unimpressed, but added, “I don’t know what it looks like on the inside.” Among other things, the ship has its own helipad, along with multiple pools and bars.

“I can only imagine the inside,” said Steven Rodrigues- Kaikana, who was walking to Kakaako when it caught his eye and he stopped to gaze at it. He mused that it was the size of a cruise ship.

The U.S. has devoted considerable resources to obtaining the yacht, sending officials to Fiji from the U.S. Marshals Service, the FBI and the U.S. Coast Guard, according to court filings.

Plainclothes federal agents, officials and uniformed Coast Guardsmen could be seen walking the ship’s deck Thursday afternoon, and an American flag was secured to the ship’s stern.

State Department of Transportation spokesman Jai Cunningham said the Amadea is scheduled to depart from the harbor at 5:30 a.m. Saturday. Cunningham directed questions beyond that statement to Coast Guard officials, who confirmed the service was “supporting the operation,” but directed questions to the FBI. An FBI spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

It’s unclear where agents will take the ship after it leaves Hawaii, but a sign reading “Fort Lauderdale” affixed to the boat’s stern Thursday indicated it could be bound for Florida. Also unclear is what U.S. authorities will do with Amadea in the long run, but it is likely to go to auction.

“Maybe Elon Musk will buy it,” quipped Eric Whippy, a Hawaii resident from Fiji, as he looked at the vessel with his 17-year-old daughter, Caroline.

President Joe Biden has pushed for legislation, which has been passed by lawmakers in the House of Representatives, that would allow the U.S. to seize yachts and other assets of sanctioned Russians, liquidate them and use those funds to benefit Ukraine. The European Union is considering similar measures. The U.S. and other governments will likely face rounds of legal challenges when they move to sell the multimillion-dollar floating palaces and other assets.

Already, more than a dozen yachts worth more than $2.25 billion have been seized as part of the push, spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The fight over this particular ship centered on its ownership. Its legal owner, Millemarin Investments Ltd., contends the vessel isn’t owned by Kerimov as the U.S. alleges, but another Russian tycoon, Eduard Khudainatov, the former chairman and CEO of Russian oil and gas giant Rosneft Oil Co. Khudainatov doesn’t appear to be on any sanctions lists. Counsel for Millemarin didn’t respond to requests for comment. Kerimov and his representatives also didn’t respond.

The U.S. alleges that Khudainatov is “being used as a clean, unsanctioned owner” to conceal the Amadea’s true owner. Kerimov is a Russian gold billionaire who was first sanctioned by Washington in 2018, Bloomberg reported in May.

Millemarin put up a series of legal challenges and appealed to Fiji’s Supreme Court before it ran out of options. Legal challenges over ownership need to be hammered out in the U.S. courts, said Fijian authorities — an argument the courts in Fiji sided with.

Legal experts expect the Russian tycoons connected to seized superyachts and other assets will bring the fight to courts all over the world.

“Clearly, the beneficial owners have very deep pockets,” said Benjamin Maltby, a partner at London-based Keystone Law, who specializes in superyacht law. “They do have a lot of money to pay for lawyers and drag these cases out. They’re not going to just give up their superyachts.”

On May 3, Fiji’s High Court gave the green light for U.S. and local authorities to seize the vessel, but a series of legal challenges from the registered owner ensued.

The U.S. wasted no time after the stay order was lifted June 7, sailing the ship out of Fiji’s waters within hours before another legal challenge could be mounted. It set sail for the U.S. with a new crew of more than 20 hired by U.S. authorities, according to court documents seen by Bloomberg.

The U.S. says layers of offshore shell companies were created to conceal that Kerimov is actually the beneficial owner, according to a U.S. affidavit reported earlier by Bloomberg. Kerimov, a member of Russia’s upper house of parliament, was also sanctioned by the United Kingdom and the EU in March for his close ties to Putin.

Kerimov is worth about $13.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. His family formerly held nearly half of Polyus, the biggest gold producer in Russia. He beat money-laundering charges in France in 2018.

The Amadea arrived in Fiji’s Lautoka port April 12 after an 18-day journey from Mexico, data compiled by Bloomberg shows. Fiji detained the superyacht the following week after the U.S. government requested mutual legal assistance, according to Fiji’s public prosecutions office.

The Amadea is among more than a dozen multimillion-dollar Russian tycoon- linked megayachts rounded up by Western governments. Megayachts owned by wealthy Russians account for as much as 10% of the global fleet, according to industry watcher The Super­yacht Group.