ReportedPublic Finance2023 to 2026
Alfa Nero: Sale, subpoenas, and the missing paper trail
A superyacht originally valued at over $100 million was sold for $40 million — a 60%+ discount — amid an international court fight naming Prime Minister Gaston Browne and his wife Minister Maria Bird Browne among 19 subpoena targets. The allegation in US federal court filings is that top government officials corruptly conspired to seize and sell the vessel. Proceeds remain unaccounted to the public.
The yacht was valued at over $100–120 million. A near-closing auction with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt reached $67.6 million before collapsing after litigation. The final sale to Turkish businessman Ali Riza Yildirim was $40 million — a discount of at least $27.6 million from the Schmidt bid alone.
US court filings name 19 individuals and entities in subpoena requests, including PM Gaston Browne and Minister Maria Bird Browne. The legal allegation is that officials 'corruptly conspired to seize and sell' the vessel — not a vague transparency criticism but a specific claim in federal proceedings.
The allegation that Browne had a personal ownership interest and promoted the yacht for charter at $812,000 per week on social media sits in legal filings and has never been addressed with documentary rebuttal by the government.
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