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An astronomical sum of 583.1 million euros was spent on the construction of Russian President Vladimir Putin's yacht Scheherazade, which became known after an investigation by Alexei Navalny's team, Dosye reports. Most likely, the yacht was used by Alina Kabayeva.
Dosye relies on the investigation, conducted by law enforcement agencies in Spain, Italy, Germany and Finland. The luxurious 140-meter Scheherazade was a New Year present for Putin: the contract for its construction was signed on December 30, 2014. The money for the construction was collected by a group of Russian businessmen, headed by the oligarch Gennady Timchenko, according to Dosye.
The contract was signed by Diams Overseas, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. It was made with the German shipyard Lürssen, which is not coincidental, Dosye says. Several yachts of Russian oligarchs, such as the 156 m long Dilbar owned by Alisher Usmanov, were built in its docks.
On paper, the yacht is owned through an offshore company by Eduard Khudainatov, the former president of Rosneft and an old ally of Igor Sechin. However, the businessman is a front man for Putin and his entourage, Dosye notes. Just over 583 million euros was transferred from five offshore companies for the construction of the Scheherazade. The money was wired by Alera Assets, Diams Overseas, High Definition, Imperial Yachts, and Onda Mare.
Imperial Yachts was also responsible for the construction of another two yachts, the Amadea owned by Suleiman Kerimov and the Crescent owned by Igor Sechin. High Definition belongs to Summa Group co-owner Ziyavudin Magomedov. Onda Mare services luxury ships and its British arm is headed by the Scheherazade’s captain Guy Bennett-Pierce.
He says he has never seen Putin on board. Dosye’s source familiar with the former Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva claims that the alleged mistress and mother of Putin's children had been on the boat.
The fact that the Scheherazade belongs to Putin became known after an investigation by Navalny's team. The investigators studied the list of everyone working on the yacht. The list was compiled in Marina di Carrara, the Italian port where the yacht was found. The document contained the name and details of each crew member, from date of birth to visa number. All of the names were Russian, almost all of them affiliated with the Federal Guard Service (FSO).
In May, the yacht was arrested by the Italian government. The financial police discovered “substantial economic and business ties between the beneficial owner of the Scheherazade and prominent Russian government officials.”