Shell Games and Straw Owners: The Forfeiture Fight
The vessel was seized in May 2022 by Fijian authorities at the request of the U.S., following a civil forfeiture complaint asserting that Kerimov was using shell companies and Khudainatov’s name to dodge asset seizures stemming from sanctions tied to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea.
Though Khudainatov claimed full ownership of the yacht, Judge Ho ruled in March that there was “sufficient basis” to determine he and his firm, Millemarin Investments, were merely straw owners—holders of title masking the real beneficiary: Kerimov.
Khudainatov’s continued refusal to sit for a deposition in the case led the court to issue a default judgment against him. His subsequent appeal and request for a bond or price floor on the yacht’s sale were similarly denied on Friday.
Auction Angst: Will the Yacht Sell at a Bargain?
Khudainatov argued that a government-run sale could fetch far less than the vessel’s appraised $230 million value, citing a previous DOJ sale of another yacht with a rumored original price of $82 million that went for just $42 million in a sealed-bid auction.
But Judge Ho countered that fair market value isn’t based on appraisals or past price tags—it’s what someone is willing to pay now, especially for a yacht tainted by international litigation and restricted ownership.
“To the extent that the Amadea‘s sale price might be suppressed… that would only mean its ‘fair market value’ is less than what claimants believe it ought to be,” the judge wrote.
