THE judicial sale of luxury yacht Equanimity has been completed, with the receipt of the full purchase amount of US$126 million (RM523 million) from Genting Malaysia Bhd on April 23.

Attorney-General Tommy Thomas said the vessel was handed over to Genting’s subsidiary on April 25.

“The completion of the sale was handled by the court-appointed stakeholder, and the sales bill was duly signed by the admiralty court sheriff on April 24.

“The completion and settlement of the judicial sale process fully complied with the sheriff’s conditions for the sale, which was part of the admiralty court order issued on April 3,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Genting, in a filing with Bursa Malaysia on April 3, confirmed the purchase of the yacht, along with bunkers, fuel, lubricants and other items on board.

Thomas said as of April 30, some RM15.5 million had been spent on Equanimity’s handling and maintenance following its seizure on August 6 last year.

He said the sale proves the Malaysian judiciary’s ability to provide world-class legal services, especially in admiralty law and the provision of support services.

The purchase price will be kept by the stakeholder for a 90-day period, during which lawyers will move the court for leave to gazette the receipt of the payment for taxation and determination of priorities for payment out of the proceeds, he added.

“It is only after these court orders that the monies will be credited into a segregated 1Malaysia Development Bhd asset-recovery account, which was set up solely to recover 1MDB assets in order to pay off the state investor’s debts.” – Bernama, May 7, 2019.