British man accused of hiding Russian mega-yacht Tango from US sanctions

A British citizen has been arrested in Spain on US criminal charges alleging he helped a billionaire Russian oligarch evade sanctions related to his $90 million megayacht.

Richard Masters, 52, was detained by the Spanish Civil Guard on Friday and faces extradition to the United States on charges of trying 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 inventing a false name, ‘Fanta’, for the Tango in order to hide the yacht’s connection to Vekselberg from financial institutions.

Despite the alleged plan, the Tango was seized by the FBI last April in Palma de Mallorca, the capital of Spain’s Balearic Islands and a tax and recreational haven for the ultra-rich.

Masters faces extradition to the US on charges of attempting to conceal from authorities sanctioned oligarch Viktor Vekselberg’s 255-foot luxury yacht, the Tango (above).

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 citizen with dual Swiss citizenship, who remains a fugitive.

Masters and Osipov are charged with conspiring to defraud the United States and commit crimes against the United States, violating sanctions laws, and money laundering.

Vekselberg is a billionaire and a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who heads Moscow-based Renova Group, a conglomerate that encompasses metals, mining, technology and other assets.

Vekselberg’s US assets have been frozen since 2018 and US companies are prohibited from doing business with him and his entities, but new sanctions were enacted against his yacht following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

Masters is the founder and director of Master Yachts, a yacht management company in Palma de Mallorca.

The company’s website boasts that it is “recognized for its highly ethical, no-nonsense and pragmatic approach” and committed to “transparency and integrity.”

Masters is the founder of Master Yachts, a yacht management company in Palma de Mallorca which claims to be “renowned for its highly ethical, sensible and pragmatic approach”.

A civil guard stands next to the yacht named Tango in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, Monday, April 4, 2022, as FBI agents search and seize the vessel.

A US federal agent and two civil guards board the yacht called Tango in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, on April 4, 2022.

However, US prosecutors allege that after Vekselberg was sanctioned in April 2018, Masters’ company took over management of Tango and conspired to evade US sanctions.

According to the indictment, Masters invented the false name of the yacht ‘Fanta’

According to the indictment, Masters invented the false name ‘Fanta’ and used various solutions to avoid penalties, including payments in other currencies and through third parties.

As a result, Tango’s trappings, including its satellite TV, luxury goods and teleconferencing software, were all US-origin products and services supplied by US companies, in violation of sanctions laws, prosecutors say.

“Sanctions evasion enablers allow oligarchs who support the Vladimir Putin regime to circumvent US law,” said US Attorney Matthew M. Graves.

“The United States will not allow its financial institutions and people to be manipulated or defrauded in order to benefit those who support an illegal war,” he added.

The investigation was coordinated through a Justice Department task force known as KleptoCapture, whose goal is to impose sweeping sanctions against Russia’s oligarchs following the invasion of Ukraine.

“These men made their choices and are now facing the consequences of a failed attempt to profit from, rather than oppose, a sophisticated transnational criminal enterprise,” said KleptoCapture director Andrew Adams.

The United States seeks the extradition of Masters from Spain. It was not clear if he had an attorney to speak on his behalf. An arrest warrant is pending for Osipov.