MOSCOW - Russian businessman Konstantin Malofeyev, who is under US sanctions, on Thursday accused the United States of trying to steal US$5.4 million (S$7 million) of his assets, saying he would file a lawsuit in Russia, where his rights are protected.

US prosecutors may confiscate US$5.4 million belonging to Mr Malofeyev, a judge in New York ruled last week, paving the way for the funds to potentially be used to help rebuild Ukraine.

The ruling marked the first forfeiture order for a Russian oligarch’s assets since the Department of Justice launched a task force in March last year aimed at squeezing the finances of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s allies after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine.

Mr Malofeyev said his lawsuit in a US court should be called “Malofeyev v The United States”.

“But such a lawsuit is impossible there: there is no justice in the US,” he wrote on Telegram. “None of the robbed investors can defend their rights there.”

Since Mr Malofeyev did not contest the forfeiture request, prosecutors last week said the funds should be forfeited by default.

“I, as a citizen of Russia, a state with a thousand-year history of justice, will not file a lawsuit in an American court,” Mr Malofeyev said. “Our laws are designed to protect our rights and I will apply to the competent authorities where I live.”

It was not clear whether a ruling in Mr Malofeyev’s favour in a Russian court would have any impact on the US case.

US authorities have accused Mr Malofeyev, the owner of Christian Orthodox television channel Tsargrad TV, of financing separatists in Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.

Mr Malofeyev, who has denied financing separatists, was sanctioned by Washington in 2014 and charged with sanctions violations in 2022. REUTERS