Medvedchuk's assets in Ukraine are seized by authorities.

Medvedchuk's assets in Ukraine are seized by authorities.
Medvedchuk's assets in Ukraine are seized by authorities.
  • On Thursday, Ukrainian authorities announced the seizure of over 150 assets belonging to Viktor Medvedchuk, a former media tycoon and close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
  • The property portfolio comprises of 26 cars, 32 apartments, 23 houses, 30 plots of land, 17 parking spots and a yacht.
  • New information was released by authorities regarding the capture of the individual who had been on the run for over a month. They revealed that they had thwarted a complex Kremlin plan to first transport him to Russian-occupied territories and then to Moscow.
FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) attends a meeting with leader of Ukraine’s Opposition Platform - For Life party Viktor Medvedchuk in Saint Petersburg, Russia July 18, 2019. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS  ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY./File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Russia’s President Vladimir Putin (R) attends a meeting with leader of Ukraine’s Opposition Platform - For Life party Viktor Medvedchuk in Saint Petersburg, Russia July 18, 2019.  (Mikhail Klimentyev | Sputnik | Reuters)

Ukrainian authorities announced on Thursday that they have confiscated over 150 assets belonging to Viktor Medvedchuk, a former media tycoon and politician who is accused of treason for allegedly collaborating with the Kremlin to undermine Ukraine's elected government.

According to an announcement from Ukraine's security service, they included 26 cars, 32 apartments, 23 houses, 30 plots of land, 17 parking spots and a yacht.

Officials reportedly discovered and confiscated stakes in 25 companies belonging to either Medvedchuk or his spouse, Oksana Marchenko.

This week, Ukrainian law enforcement detained Medvedchuk, who had been on the run for over a month as a fugitive following Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine and subsequent chaos.

The arrest of Medvedchuk, who is reputed to be Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest Ukrainian friend, was met with jubilation in Ukraine, which is currently resisting a brutal Russian assault.

For the first time, Ukraine's top law enforcement officer disclosed information about the mission to capture Medvedchuk on Thursday.

Russian agents planned to smuggle Medvedchuk out of Ukrainian territory by boat into the Russian-occupied region of the country, and from there on to Moscow, according to him.

The 67-year-old Medvedchuk was apprehended while wearing a Ukrainian army uniform and with what appeared to be authentic law enforcement officers by his side.

The photo of Medvedchuk in custody released by Ukrainian authorities this week does not reveal his immense wealth, estimated by Forbes Ukraine to be approximately $620 million in 2021.

The asset seizures reveal the opulent lifestyle of one of Ukraine's wealthiest oligarchs.

In Ukraine, Medvedchuk owned multiple luxurious homes. One of his properties outside of Kyiv boasts a real Pullman train car with a gold interior, positioned at a fake station platform.

This year, a Ukrainian judge ordered the seizure of three apartments, two villas, and a yacht belonging to Marchenko.

The Royal Romance, a 300-foot yacht valued at approximately $200 million, was repossessed in mid-March while docked in Croatia.

No details were given by Ukrainian authorities on the second yacht they seized on Thursday.

by Christina Wilkie

politics