An investigation of Russian bank fraud related to a business partner-turned-entrepreneur selling American-made technology to Ukraine during the first four months of Russia’s invasion
After falling out with a business partner, Martin Zlatev went to work for another company and was able to sell $30 million worth of rockets, grenade launcher and ammunition to the Ukrainian military.
“Time is of the essence,” the pair recently wrote to Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense. They outlined a plan to sell American, Bulgarian and Bosnian arms to Ukraine.
Since the Russian invasion in February, the Biden administration has quietly fast-tracked hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of private arms sales to Ukraine, slashing a weekslong approval process to a matter of hours. In just the first four months of the year — the latest data available — the State Department authorized more than $300 million in private deals to Ukraine, government documents show. The department sold less than 15 million worth of goods to Ukraine during the entire fiscal year.
Five Russian citizens and two U.S. nationals were charged by federal prosecutors on Tuesday with conspiring to illegally obtain and ship millions of dollars worth of American-made, military-grade technology to Russia before and after its invasion of Ukraine this year.
Some defendants tried to send nuclear technology to Russia but it was intercepted before it arrived, the department said in a statement.
Garland said investigators and prosecutors would be relentless in their efforts to find and bring to justice those who have subverted the rule of law and aided the Russian regime’s invasion of Ukraine.
The most recent action that law enforcement has taken is the indictments they have taken with the aid of the Task Force Klepto Capture, which was announced earlier this year to help enforce sanctions against the Russian government.
Two of the Russian nationals were arrested abroad and are set to undergo extradition proceedings, the Justice Department said in a statement Wednesday. The seven defendants are facing charges. Five of the defendants charged with bank fraud conspiracy linked to the oil smuggling scheme could face more 30 years in prison.
The illicit activities continued after the United States imposed sanctions against Serniya, Sertal and one of the defendants, Yevgeniy Grinin, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, according to the Justice Department.
To complete the transactions, the defendants falsified shipping documents and ran tens of millions of dollars through bank accounts they had created under fake company names, prosecutors said. One of the defendants boasted about how easy it would be to fool the banks, saying that this is the most qualified bank in the country.
The four individuals, three of whom were fromLatvia and one from Ukranian, are accused of scheming to get a high-precision grinding machine from the US to Russia.
Three Latvians were arrested in a foreign country on Tuesday and the Ukrainian was held in the US in June at the request of the US government, according to the Justice Department. Charging documents have not been unsealed for the case, and it is not yet clear if the defendants have entered a formal plea.
U.S. citizens condemned to feed moscows war-machine: a joint investigation into two defendants indicted by the Brookings investigation
Among those items, according to the indictment, were a “chip set” of 45 advanced semiconductors; a $45,000 “low noise cesium frequency synthesizer”; high-quality spectrum analyzers used in electronic testing; and pricey oscilloscopes and signal generators. Many are so-called dual-use devices that can be employed for military or civilian purposes.
“Our office will not rest in its vigorous pursuit of persons who unlawfully procure U.S. technology to be used in furtherance of Russia’s brutal war on democracy,” Mr. Peace said.
The Justice Department identified the defendants as Boris Livshits, a former Brooklyn resident now living in St. Pete, Russia, and Alexey Ippolitov, a Moscow resident.
The defendants face various conspiracy, fraud and money laundering counts, and could be sentenced to up to 30 years in prison apiece if convicted of the most serious charges. Four of them remain at large.
Mr. Yermolenko, an American citizen, and Mr. Brayman, a permanent U.S. resident identified in court filings as an Israeli citizen, were arraigned on Tuesday.
Mr. Brayman was released on a $150,000 bond and subject to conditions that included turning in his passports and wearing an electronic monitoring device. The presumption of innocence is entitlement to Mr. Brayman, according to his lawyer.
Mr. Yermolenko was released after posting a $500,000 bond partially secured by his house. Nora Hirozawa, a lawyer for Mr. Yermolenko at his arraignment, declined to comment.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/12/13/world/russia-ukraine-news/federal-prosecutors-say-2-us-nationals-and-5-russians-conspired-to-feed-moscows-war-machine
Mr. Konoschenok – a Russian Intelligence Officer in Estonia, and a Search for Cosmic Remnants
Mr. Konoschenok, who the U.S. authorities believe is an officer in Russia’s domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Security Service, was arrested in Estonia last week and is awaiting extradition proceedings, according to prosecutors. Estonian authorities found 375 pounds of U.S.-made ammunition in a search of a warehouse he has used, the Justice Department said.