Richard Masters, 52, was arrested on Friday on charges of violating US sanctions laws
A British citizen has been arrested in Spain on US criminal charges alleging that he helped a billionaire Russian oligarch evade sanctions relating to his $90 million megayacht.
Richard Masters, 52, was arrested on Friday by the Spanish Guardia Civil and faces extradition to the US on charges that he tried to hide Viktor Vekselberg's 255-foot luxury yacht, the Tango, from authorities.
An unsealed indictment accuses Masters, who runs a yacht management company, of concocting a phony name, 'the Fanta,' for the Tango in order to hide the yacht's connection to Vekselberg from financial institutions.
Despite the alleged scheme, the Tango was seized by the FBI last April in Palma de Mallorca, the capital of Spain's Balearic Islands and a playground and evdEn Eve NakLiyAt tax haven for the ultra-rich.
Masters faces extradition to the US on charges that he tried to hide sanctioned oligarch Viktor Vekselberg's 255-foot luxury yacht, the Tango (above), from authorities
Vekselberg (right) is a billionaire and close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin who heads the Moscow-based Renova Group
Also charged in connection with the alleged plot was Vladislav Osipov, 51, a Russian national with dual Swiss citizenship, who remains at large.
Masters and Osipov are both charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States and EvDEN eve nAKliyaT to commit offenses against the United States, violating sanctions laws, and money laundering.
Vekselberg is a billionaire and close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin who heads the Moscow-based Renova Group, a conglomerate encompassing metals, mining, tech and other assets.
Since 2018, Vekselberg's assets in the US have been frozen, and US companies are forbidden from doing business with him and his entities, but fresh sanctions targeting his yacht were enacted following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year.
Masters is the founder and evDen evE naKliyAt director of Master Yachts, a yacht management company in Palma de Mallorca.
The company's website boasts that it is 'renowned for its highly ethical, no-nonsense and pragmatic approach' and committed to 'transparency and EvdeN Eve NaKLiyaT integrity' If you loved this article and you would like to get more info with regards to eVDeN EVe NaKLiYat kindly visit our own web-site. .