Italy has seized the yacht of Russian oligarch Andrei Melnichenko

LAST ANNOUNCEMENT: 14:47

Italian police have seized a luxury boat belonging to Russian billionaire Andrei Igorevich Melnichenko, the prime minister’s office said on Saturday, days after the businessman was placed on the EU sanctions list following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Reuters.

The 143-meter-long sailing vessel A, which costs 530m euros, has been seized in the northern port of Trieste, the government said.

Designed by Philippe Starck and built by Nobiskrug in Germany, the boat is the largest of its kind in the world, the government said.

Melnichenko owned the major fertilizer producer EuroChem Group and the coal company SUEK. The companies said in a statement on Thursday that he had resigned as a board member of both companies and resigned as their beneficiary, effective Wednesday.

Last week, Italian police seized 143 million euros worth of villas and yachts from five high-profile Russians on the sanctions list.

The police operation was part of a concerted effort by Western powers to punish wealthy Russians linked to President Vladimir Putin.

Source: Capital

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