This is a summary and comment on the seizure of a yacht owned by Viktor Vekselberg, a sanctioned Russian Oligarch, on the ground that it constitutes the proceeds of bank fraud and violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), and constitutes property involved in an international money laundering offense. The article, excerpted from the May 2022 issue of the Money Laundering and Forfeiture Digest, explains the legal theories underlying the authority of the United States to seize and forfeit the property of a sanctioned individual under the civil forfeiture laws, as well as the authority of a court in the United States to issue a seizure warrant for property located abroad.
The following is a link to a TV interview explaining the legal basis for the seizure and forfeiture in the same case.