US prosecutors have charged five Russian nationals for sanctions evasion and other violations related to shipping military technology bought from US manufacturers to Russian buyers, some of which ended up on the battlefield in Ukraine.
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Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said the electronic components purchased by Russian nationals Yury Orekhov and Svetlana Kuzurgasheva included semiconductors, radars and satellites.
Some of the electronics obtained through the scheme have been found in Russian weapons platforms seized in Ukraine, prosecutors said.
They used a German company to ship the military technology, as well as Venezuelan oil, to Russian purchasers, prosecutors said.
Orekhov was arrested in Germany on Monday. Another Russian charged in the case, Artem Uss, has been arrested in Italy. The United States is seeking his extradition.
"We will continue to investigate, disrupt and prosecute those who fuel Russia's brutal war in Ukraine, evade sanctions and perpetuate the shadowy economy of transnational money laundering," Breon Peace, the top federal prosecutor in Brooklyn, said in a statement.
Also on Wednesday, the US Treasury Department sanctioned Orekhov and two companies he controls, Nord-Deutsche Industrieanlagenbau GmbH, also known as NDA, and Opus Energy Trading LLC.
Treasury described Orekhov as a procurement agent and said some of the shipments of military and sensitive dual-use technologies to Russian users violated US export controls.
The US-origin technologies could be used in fighter aircraft, ballistic and hypersonic missile systems, smart munitions and other military applications, Treasury said.
The charges and sanctions come as Washington seeks to expand sanctions on Russia and crack down on evasion to pressure the Kremlin to stop its invasion of Ukraine.
At a first-of-its kind gathering last week with officials from 32 countries and the United States, Washington warned it could impose sanctions on people, countries and companies that supported Russia's military-industrial complex.
"We know these efforts are having a direct effect on the battlefield, as Russia's desperation has led them to turn to inferior suppliers and outdated equipment," Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said.
Australian Associated Press
