The confiscated russian yacht “disappeared” from the port in Italy

A russian oligarch’s yacht “mysteriously disappeared” from a port in Sardinia, allegedly arrested as a result of EU sanctions.

The luxurious 22-meter Aldabra belongs to russian billionaire Dmitry Mazepin. The vessel, worth up to €1 million, was docked in the port of Olbia, Italy, and confiscated in March when Mazepin was sanctioned weeks after the start of russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The yacht remained there until June, when it disappeared, a few hours before it was officially confirmed that it belonged to Mazepin.

Mazepin hired a foreign company to move the yacht from Italy. An investigation by the financial police of Olbia revealed that the yacht stopped in the small port of Biserta in Tunisia, but its current location is unknown.

All those involved in the case face fines of up to 500,000 euros for the illegal export of the vessel from Italy.

This is the first case in Italy when a russian with frozen assets in the country managed to avoid EU sanctions.