LISBON, May 14 (Reuters) – Portugal has blocked the sale of a 10 million euro ($10.4 million) mansion belonging to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, targeted by sanctions due to the war in Ukraine , reports the Publico newspaper on Saturday.
The property register of the luxury resort Quinta do Lago mansion (Algarve) was frozen on March 25 – meaning it cannot be changed – at the request of the Foreign Ministry, a month after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Publico.
The ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. A spokesperson for Roman Abramovich did not respond to multiple requests.
According to Publico, the former Chelsea Football Club owner tried to sell the property 15 days before the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine through Delaware-based Millhouse Views LLC, owned by Millhouse LLC. , which manages its assets.
Portugal’s largest bank, Caixa Geral de Depositos, became aware of the attempted sale and alerted the authorities, Publico said. The bank declined to comment.
Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the British government and the European Union for his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The billionaire obtained Portuguese nationality in April 2021 on the basis of a law offering naturalization to descendants of Sephardic Jews expelled from the Iberian Peninsula during the medieval Inquisition.
(Report Catarina Demony, French version Benjamin Mallet)