A $700 million luxury superyacht linked to Putin was seized by Italian authorities

• A $700 million luxury megayacht with ties to Putin is frozen, according to Italian authorities.
• An Italian police investigation found significant ties between the ship and the Russian government.

A $700 million luxury megayacht with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin has been seized, Italian authorities announced on Friday.

An Italian police investigation found significant connections between the ship, called the Scheherazade, and the Russian government, authorities said.

The Scheherazade appeared ready to set sail after being loaded with food and supplies and refloated on Tuesday, possibly in an effort aimed at leaving before it could be seized. The 459-foot vessel spent the previous nine months in a dry dock in the Tuscan port of Marina di Carrara, The New York Times reported.

An ex-crew member told The Times that conversations arose about Putin potentially being the owner of the yacht, but Italian authorities did not specify whether or not Putin owned the ship.

The Scheherazade is among the latest Russian-owned megayachts to be seized as a result of sanctions imposed after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Amadea, a $300 million superyacht owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Suleyman Kerimov, was also seized by officials in Fiji this week.