German police raid Russian oligarch's yacht

More than 60 police officers raided a luxury yacht in northern Germany tied to a Russian businessman accused of breaching sanctions and money laundering, Frankfurt prosecutors said Tuesday.  

Authorities identified the suspect only as a 69-year-old Russian businessman but did say he was the target of the same investigation last week.

At that time, police raided a lakeside villa registered to Alisher Usmanov — a close ally of Vladimir Putin's. They also searched 24 other properties connected to him in the German states of Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hamburg, and Schleswig-Holstein.

Prosecutors say they are investigating the funneling of several million euros acquired in illegal activities, including tax evasion. In a statement, they said this involved an "extensive and complex network of companies and corporations."

They said the yacht raid was also carried out to comply with a request for help from the US Justice Department, which has launched a probe of its own.

In a statement on Monday, representatives of Usmanov called the charges "baseless and defamatory."

Who is Alisher Usmanov?

The UK's Sunday Times newspaper ranked Usmanov at No. 6 in a list of the world's richest people in 2021. He was one of dozens of Russian billionaires to be hit by Western sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine. 

He is possibly best known for his metals and mining interests, for owning the Kommersant publishing house in Russia, and for owning Russia's second-largest mobile phone operator, Megafon. He also was formerly a major stakeholder in Premier League football giants Arsenal. 

Usmanov is said to be worth an estimated net $16.2 billion (€16.9 billion). He has a 49% economic interest and 100% voting rights in the global conglomerate and holding company USM. 

While the United States has blocked his personal assets, it has kept companies controlled by him off its list of sanctions in a bid not to drive up commodity prices. He is thought to presently be living in his native Uzbekistan.

The Official Journal of the European Union described Usmanov in March as a "pro-Kremlin oligarch with particularly close ties to Russia's President Vladimir Putin."

But Usmanov disputes this. Along with former Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich, he is one of the oligarchs appealing his inclusion on the EU sanctions lists, at the bloc's General Court.

The yacht that was searched — the "Dilbar" — is the world's largest yacht by tonnage and is officially owned by Usmanov's sister.

The 155-meter (500-foot) vessel was named after Usmanov's mother. It is valued at some $600 million, and was previously docked in a Hamburg shipyard since October 2021 for repairs. The vessel is now moored in the northern port city of Bremen.

rc/wd (Reuters, AFP, AP)

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