U.S. to seize Russian oligarch's $90 million airplane

A U.S. judge authorized prosecutors on Monday to seize a $90 million airplane owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Andrei Skoch.

Skoch is a member of the Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament. He was sanctioned in 2018 by the U.S. Treasury Department for allegedly having ties with Russian organized criminal groups. Further sanctions were imposed on Skoch after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24. 

Skoch purchased the Airbus A319-100 through shell companies and trusts tied to his partner, Reuters reported. Yet, despite being sanctioned, he continued to pay for the plane’s registration and insurance. 

“The $113,180 in registration payments and $284,459 in insurance premiums passed through the US banking system without a license to allow payment on sanctioned entities,” reported CNN. 

U.S. authorities believe the plane to be in Kazakhstan, according to court documents. 

In addition, Skoch owns a yacht named the Madame Gu, a helicopter, and a villa at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seychelles. However, these assets are not authorized for seizure since authorities need to demonstrate that sanctions were violated to be able to seize them.

The U.S. is seeking to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the war in Ukraine by freezing and seizing the assets of wealthy Russians. 

“Today’s action demonstrates that the U.S. government will be relentless in our efforts to bring to justice those that are enabling Putin’s heinous war against Ukraine,” said the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement, Matthew S. Axelrod.

"U.S. law enforcement has demonstrated that international shell games will not suffice to hide the fruits of corruption and money laundering," said Andrew Adams, the federal prosecutor leading the Justice Department's KleptoCapture task force.

In June, the court issued warrants to seize two luxury planes owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, valued at $400 million, and a $300 million yacht called Amadea owned by oligarch Suleiman Kerimov. In April, U.S. authorities seized the $90 million yacht Tango, which belongs to Viktor Vekselberg.