ROME, September 23. /ITAR-TASS/. Italian authorities have arrested several houses on the island of Sardinia, a hotel in Rome, shares and banking accounts belonging to Russian businessman Arkady Rotenberg and totaling 30 million euros, Corriere della Sera reported Tuesday, citing sources with knowledge of the situation.

The arrest of the assets of Rotenberg, shareholder of SMP Bank, several construction firms providing services under state orders and a fertilizer producer, was in line with the EU sanctions against Russian officials close to President Vladimir Putin.

A spokesman for Rotenberg told ITAR-TASS: “The situation is illegitimate and in fact absurd. Ardady Romanovich has no assets in Italy, and reports on the amount of property are inaccurate.”

The spokesman said that while “a small four-star hotel in Rome can still be considered as an asset,” Rotenberg’s private property that had not been put up for sale should not be subject to sanctions.

Corriere della Sera reported that prior to the procedure, carried out early on Tuesday, Italy’s authorities had informed Rotenberg and his companies, Olpon Investment Limited, registered in Cyprus, and Aurora 31, that owns the Berg Luxury hotel in central Rome.

The report said the steps come in line with the measures aimed to "prevent and stop the financing of the territory from the countries posing a threat to the world and international security.”

An ITAR-TASS correspondent reported on Tuesday citing a porter that the Berg Luxury Hotel is still open and its staff continues working despite local media reports that it has been seized by the Italian Financial Guard.

Russian businessman Rotenberg went on the EU sanctions list on July 30 and on the Swiss sanctions list on August 27. In late March, he and his billionaire brother Boris was targeted by the US sanctions imposed against Russia over its stance on Ukraine.