One wonders how New York will treat Russian Billionaire and his alleged “armed to the teeth” (including fully automatic weapons and missiles?) …
Russian Billionaire's Mega-Yacht Makes Waves in NYC
Roman Abramovich is worth more than $12 billion, and his yacht "Eclipse" has arrived in New York City, reports CNBC's Robert Frank. On Wednesday, a private yacht sailed slowly and quietly up the Hudson River and docked near midtown Manhattan. This wasn't just any yacht, however. It was Eclipse -- the largest private yacht in the world. And its presence is sure to touch off a frenzy of speculation about its owners and future.
Seeing Eclipse docked off the midtown piers is the boating world equivalent of seeing a blue whale swim up the Hudson in the dead of winter. It just doesn't happen -- or hasn't happened. Eclipse's owner, the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, is famously private and averse to publicity. Eclipse is almost always kept in the rarified preserves of Monaco, Cannes, Portfino or St. Bart's, visible to other billionaires but rarely the hoi polloi. By docking the boat in Manhattan, under the gaze of millions and a horde of media companies, Abramovich is, to say the least, inviting attention.
A spokesman for Mr. Abramovich declined to comment on the boat or its owner's reasons for being in Manhattan. But several dock workers and officials who have been briefed on the boat say it is scheduled to be in town until mid-April.
Some speculate that Abramovich may be using the boat as a temporary residence, since it is more secure and can better accommodate his large security force than a New York coop or hotel. Abramovich's partner, Dasha Zhukova, has announced that she is pregnant, and due in the Spring.
Eclipse has a crew of more than 60 people and a battalion of security cameras and sensors. It has two helicopter pads, two pools and a submarine. At 533-feet, it remains the largest yacht in the world. But it may hold the title only for a few more months. Source: Russian Billionaire's Mega-Yacht Makes Waves in NYC
You can’t say they don’t know the ship is armed …
To keep the oligarch safe, the Eclipse has a military-grade missile defence system, armour-plating around Abramovich's master suite and bullet-proof windows. Source: Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1192640/Admiral-Abramovich-launches-300million-mega-yachtski-The-worlds-biggest-submarine.html
Roman Abramovich has the additional around-the-clock protection of a private army of no fewer than forty armed guards, which is more than the number of secret service agents who accompany the President of the United States on some outings. <Source>
Bottom line …
Will billionaire New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg disarm fellow billionaire and make them as vulnerable to crime as the average New Yorker? Especially because he is not a citizen, but a visitor to the United States.
-- steve
Will his bodyguards be limited to 7 rounds in their firearms like the New York Cops?
Posted by: Floyd R Turbo | February 15, 2013 at 10:59 AM