The government of Thailand has seized the private yacht Atlas for what it claims are the owner’s ties to technology-related crime.
The arrest took place on December 25, three days after Thailand’s Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) issued an order of confiscation. The yacht Atlas was docked at Phuket Island Marina. Although AMLO issued a statement referring to a 2017 delivery by the same name, the superyacht it seized is an older and larger project, a 167-footer (51-meter) from Codecasa. Originally launching in 2011 as Aldabra (below), the yacht has been in private use for her current owner for a few years.
In the confiscation order, AMLO indicates the yacht is related to transnational call-center scams. It alleges the scams involve a Thai national, Miss Taengthai, and unnamed others. The agency didn’t identify Taengthai as the owner of the superyacht. Neither did it identify anyone else as the owner. However, investigative journalists reporting on scam call-center networks for the past few years state the owner is Benjamin Mauerberger, a South African national. Mauerberger has documented ties to Thailand government officials, including the former prime minister. Notably, AMLO seized other assets connected to networks reportedly involving Taengthai, Mauerberger, and additional individuals on December 3. Since October, AMLO has put a priority on identifying and stopping scam call-center networks.
AMLO indicates that the seizure of Atlas is temporary, valid for 90 days. It adds that it can revoke the seizure prior to that if the owner provides evidence that she is unrelated to the alleged crimes.
Atlas is for leisurely, long-range cruising. Codecasa launched her as part of a series of 51-meters, each capable of 4,000 nautical miles at 13 knots. She was especially notable for being the first project from the shipyard with a fold-down balcony. It deploys from the master suite. Her original owner named her after an atoll in the Seychelles
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