The yacht, valued at more than 90 million euros, is owned by Russian billionaire Viktor Wexelberg. He is believed to have a close relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The 78-meter-long yacht “Tango” was arrested in the Mallorcan port of Palma in coordination with US federal agents, police said.
Wexelberg-led conglomerate Renova and several other Russian companies were already blacklisted in the United States in 2018.
Although Wexelberg is not currently subject to European Union (EU) sanctions, the United States has launched an investigation into trying to conceal that he is the owner of the yacht in order to evade Washington sanctions, Spanish police said.
Spanish and U.S. agents confiscated documents and computers found on the yacht to confirm the identity of the real owner of the yacht, police added.
This is the fourth yacht linked to Russian oligarchs that Spain has arrested since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The other three yachts are believed to belong to Russian oligarchs on the EU’s sanctions list in connection with Russia’s war against Ukraine.
In France and Italy, yachts linked to Russian oligarchs have also been arrested by the authorities.
