Allen Stanford’s 112-foot yacht was sold for $3.25 million to an unidentified bidder following a two-month online auction, according to the Florida brokerage that handled the sale.
The Sea Eagle was listed for sale on March 11 by Ardell Yacht & Ship Brokers of Fort Lauderdale, with an opening bid of $2.5 million, over Stanford’s objections. His lawyers complained a court-appointed receiver is liquidating Stanford’s assets at “fire-sale” prices before the former billionaire has been found guilty of anything.
“Mr. Stanford invested over $16 million in renovating the Sea Eagle, stripping the vessel to its hull and rebuilding it into one of the finest sport fishing boats in the world,” Ruth Brewer Schuster, one of the financier’s civil lawyers, said in an October filling objecting to the auction. “Any failure to sell the Sea Eagle for an amount far and above Ardell’s asking price of $6.5 million will be a complete waste of estate assets.”
Stanford, who denies all wrongdoing, is in jail awaiting trial on 21 criminal charges that he defrauded investors of more than $7 billion through allegedly bogus certificates of deposit issued by Antigua-based Stanford International Bank Ltd. He faces parallel civil claims from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. His criminal trial is set for January in Houston federal court.
A Steal
Stanford’s 12-year-old motor yacht attracted just two bidders beyond the initial “stalking horse” offer entered to start the bidding. Two hours before the auction ended yesterday, one bidder returned and raised his bid by $250,000 to win the Sea Eagle.
“That boat is definitely a steal at $3.25 million,” said Natalia Hortynski, Ardell’s marketing director. “We were hoping for more, because the more we get, the better it is for everybody.”
Although Florida’s yacht market is awash in bargain-priced boats, Hortynski said the Sea Eagle’s jet engines and a complete retrofitting undertaken by its Dutch manufacturer in 2005 made the craft “very unique.”
The boat was sold “as is, where is,” after it was brought to the U.S. from one of Stanford’s residences in the Caribbean, following the SEC’s suit and seizure of his assets in February 2009. Ralph Janvey, Stanford’s receiver, has been selling Stanford’s assets and investments to raise money to repay his creditors and investors.
Everything Included
In photographs of the yacht, one wall is dominated by a mirror etched with Stanford Financial Group’s stylized eagle shield logo. The boat’s oversized staterooms and marble-lined bathrooms are stocked with pillows, sheets and towels. A small dining table is set for two, and a mini-refrigerator on the upper deck is filled with beer.
Stanford’s lawyers had asked Janvey not to sell personal belongings the financier and his fiancée, Andrea Stoelker, left on the boat. In court papers, the couple requested the return of items such as several small sculptures, scuba gear, DVDs and table linens.
“They’re going with the boat,” Hortynski said of any personal items still onboard. “Everything that’s on the boat is included.”
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