Russian oligarch's superyacht could be auctioned in US

A luxurious superyacht that belonged to Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov may be headed to the auction block after a US judge on Monday dismissed a competing claim to ownership of the $300 million vessel.

The 348-foot (106-metre) Amadea has been docked in the California port of San Diego after it was seized by US authorities from the sanctioned Russian oligarch.

Another wealthy Russian, Eduard Khudainatov, the former head of Russian state oil and gas company Rosneft, claimed in a New York court to be the rightful owner of the vessel but his claim was dismissed by District Judge Dale Ho.

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According to prosecutors, Khudainatov was a "straw owner" of the Amadea and the true owner was Kerimov, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin who was sanctioned by the United States in 2018 and again in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Following the invasion, the US Justice Department under then-president Joe Biden began seizing the assets of Russian oligarchs close to Putin, an operation known as Task Force KleptoCapture.

President Donald Trump disbanded the task force after taking office.

The US Congress passed legislation last year that allows for the sale of seized Russian assets, with the proceeds going to provide humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

The Amadea, which has a helipad, pool, jacuzzi and "winter garden" on deck, according to the website superyachtfan.com, was seized in Fiji in April 2022 at the request of US authorities and later transferred to San Diego.