On July 26, 2019, Yacht Habour formally announced that it has sold a 65-meter Galactica Star superyacht belonging to oil magnate Kola Aluko, one of the business partners of a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.
The yacht was auctioned for a whopping sum of $42m (that’s N15,120,420,000 in today’s exchange rate). The yacht was the second Heesen largest superyacht till date. The exact price was sold was not made public.
The yacht was sold on July 25, according to the yacht harbor, Fraser represented the seller while Burgess represented the buyer. The name of the buyer was not made public.
It was gathered that it was auctioned by the Federal Government of Nigeria in collaboration with the government of the United States Government.
The owner of the yacht Kola Aluko was accused of cheating Nigeria out of almost N648, 018, 000, 000 ($1.8 billion) in siphoned crude oil sales.
Information on the official website of Yacht Harbour, says the yacht was custom-built in 2013.
Some of the features exterior styling by Omega Architects, engineering by Van Oossanen & Associates, finished by interiors from the boards of Bannenberg & Rowell.
American music industry power couple, Jay Z and Beyonce, has once rented the yacht for a holiday cruise. Other super stars have reportedly rented it for similar use.
It was also gathered that in April 2019, the vessel was offered for sale in a sealed bid arrangement proposed by the US Department of Justice and the Federal Republic of Nigeria and approved by US federal court.
Apart from heavy allegation corruption leveled against Aluko by Nigeria’s government, he is also on the corruption radar of the U.S alongside another oil magnate Jide Omokore.
Both men were accused of laundering money in the US and using it to acquire the yacht, among other assets.
The maintenance fee of the yacht was put at N61,201,700 ($170,000) per month, “The US and Nigerian governments received Federal Court approval to sell the arrested superyacht due to high maintenance and dockage fees, estimating the combined cost at around $170,000 per month. Managed by Fraser, the vessel was listed at $42m.”
Further investigation shows that Galactica Star accommodates up to 12 guests overnight in six cabins, comprising a master suite, one VIP stateroom, and four double cabins and also capable of carrying up to 13 crew members on board to ensure a relaxed luxury yacht experience.
Their godmother Diezani Alison-Madueke has forfeited several properties to the Federal Government. She was a minister when the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) was in power.
Anti-corruption war is one of the manifestoes of President Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressive Congress (APC).
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