Legal
Fate of $300 Million Russian Superyacht Hangs on US Trial
- Ship owned by billionaire sanctioned over Ukraine, US claims
- Another wealthy Russian says it’s his, fights to get it back
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The US went to court Tuesday to argue that a sanctioned billionaire is the true owner of a superyacht it seized in 2022, as the government goes after the assets of wealthy Russians over the war in Ukraine.
The yacht, which costs US taxpayers almost $750,000 a month to maintain and insure, is in US custody in San Diego as the legal battle drags on. The government is seeking to make sanctioned billionaire Suleiman Kerimov forfeit it. But another Russian, who isn’t under US sanctions, claims he’s the owner of the boat, and he’s trying to get it back.