Italian news media are reporting that authorities have stopped the 207-foot charter motoryacht Force Blue in La Spezia and accused owner Flavio Briatore of evading about €4 million in VAT taxes, as well as some €250,000 in taxes on fuel.


According to the Italian report, a 13-page government document orders the preventive seizure of the yacht. Briatore, who turned 60 in April, was not onboard at the time the order was served, but his 30-year-old wife, model Elisabetta Gregoraci, and their infant son are said to have been there.


Force Blue is part of the Fraser Yachts Worldwide charter fleet, taking 12 guests at a weekly base rate of €255,000 in the Mediterranean. Force Blue has at least one scheduled charter this summer, though it is unclear at this point whether that or future bookings are endangered. A charter manager at Fraser Yachts told me moments ago that the company icharter yacht Force Blue master bathrooms "still trying to find out what's going on."


I was aboard Force Blue in December 2006, when the yacht was still undergoing renovations to change her from the look that she had with her previous owner, who called her Big Roi. The renovations included adding a European-style spa with a steam room, as well as a gymnasium and expanded owner's suite. The photograph at right is of the new master bathroom that had just been installed, featuring a massive walk-through glass shower as well as a large bathtub.


Owner Briatore, an Italian native, is said to have made his fortune through franchising agreements with Benetton stores, the Billionaire fashion line, and various restaurants and resorts that he owns from Europe to Africa. He has faced other fraud allegations by the Italian government in the past, and he recently was banned from FIA-sanctioned events following accusations of race-fixing at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. That ban has since been overturned.

Written by: Kim Kavin
Kim Kavin is an award-winning writer, editor and photographer who specializes in marine travel. She is the author of 10 books including Dream Cruises: The Insider’s Guide to Private Yacht Vacations, and is editor of the online yacht vacation magazine www.CharterWave.com.