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Hypercars seized from politician net CDN$35.9 million at auction

A Lamborghini Veneno Roadster topped the sale of 25 cars relieved from the vice-president of Equatorial Guinea, fetching CDN$11 million

Matthew Guy
Sep 30, 2019  •  May 19, 2021  •  2 minute read  •  Join the conversation
A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car (R) and a 2011 Aston Martin One-77 Coupe model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car (R) and a 2011 Aston Martin One-77 Coupe model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty

Not all politicians find themselves busy moving the levers of power and arguing with their opposition party. Some, like the vice-president of Equatorial Guinea, spend their time collecting a fleet of hypercars.

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Trouble is, at least in this instance, they were all confiscated by Swiss authorities three years ago after a money-laundering investigation.

Yesterday, London-based Bonhams auctioned them all. Obey the law, kids, or you might lose your toys.

On the block were some of the rarest pieces of metal ever to dent the world’s racetracks and roadways. An extraordinary convertible version of the already-rare Lamborghini Veneno, in white-on-tan Dubai spec, sold for a gob-smacking $11,049,911 including buyer’s premium.

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Interested in a one-of-six Koenigsegg One:1 with only 597 km on the clock ? You would have had to bring $6,138,839 to walk away with the example at this auction. A 2011 Aston Martin One-77, number 35 of 77 built, went under the hammer for just over $2 million.

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The list goes on, reading like a who’s-who of exotic machinery. A Ferrari Enzo, the sheep’s-head-ugly super car from 2003, withdrew $4,143,716 from the bank account of a person who is presumably not blessed with the gift of sight.

Despite having covered just 21 km in its sixteen years on this planet, records show it recently underwent a service costing $105,393.26, meaning it cost about five thousand dollars a kilometre to operate, not counting other maintenance and the initial purchase price. Your author’s Dodge Charger is not as spendy.

  1. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2014 Lamborghini Veneto Roadster model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2014 Lamborghini Veneto Roadster model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty
  2. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Koenigsegg One:1 model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Koenigsegg One:1 model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty
  3. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Koenigsegg One:1 model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Koenigsegg One:1 model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty
  4. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari (L) and a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari (L) and a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty
  5. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a McLaren P1 coupe model model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a McLaren P1 coupe model model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty
  6. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car (R) and a 2011 Aston Martin One-77 Coupe model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2010 Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 Coupe model car (R) and a 2011 Aston Martin One-77 Coupe model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty
  7. A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President.
    A picture taken on September 28, 2019 at the Bonmont Abbey in Cheserex, western Switzerland shows a 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder model car during an auction preview by sales house Bonhams of sport cars belonging to the son of the Equatorial Guinea's President. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini /Getty

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If it simply was a yellow Ferrari the buyer wanted, they should have held out for the 2015 LaFerrari that was also at this auction. It sold for a hair under $3 million, meaning the Enzo buyer could have saved $1.1 million and a trip to the eye doctor. Compared to the Enzo, though, the LaFerrari was admittedly a high-mileage car, with 894 km under its stylish Italian loafers.

Cops in Geneva seized the fleet from an airport cargo area 2016 after criminal proceedings were opened against Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, the son of the central African nation’s leader. Earlier this year, Swiss prosecutors said they closed a money-laundering investigation against Obiang, citing an arrangement to fund programs in Equatorial Guinea with proceeds from the sale of these cars.

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