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

Italian authorities said on Friday that they had seized a $700 million megayacht with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Russian government and the ship, called the Scheherazade, were connected by an Italian police investigation.

The Scheherazade was loaded with food and supplies and refloated on Tuesday, which may have been an attempt to leave before it could be seized. The New York Times reported that the vessel spent nine months in a dry dock in Tuscany.

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

The Scheherazade is one of the Russian megayachts that have been seized because of sanctions.

The Amadea, a $300 million superyacht owned by a Russian billionaire, was seized by officials in the country.