Five Russian nationals and two oil traders are charged in a global sanctions evasion and money laundering scheme.
A 12-count indictment against five Russian nationals — Yury Orekhov, Artem Uss, Svetlana "Lana Neumann" Kuzurgasheva, Timofey Telegin and Sergey Tulyakov — was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn, N.Y., according to an Oct. 19 Department of Justice news release.
“As alleged, the defendants were criminal enablers for oligarchs, orchestrating a complex scheme to unlawfully obtain U.S. military technology and Venezuelan sanctioned oil through a myriad of transactions involving shell companies and cryptocurrency," Attorney Breon Peace said. "Their efforts undermined security, economic stability and rule of law around the world. 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.”
The charges are linked with an international network of buying, smuggling and money laundering. Juan Fernando Serrano Ponce, also known as "Juanfe Serrano," and Juan Carlos Soto were also charged with participating in the scheme by acting as middlemen for Petroleos de Venezuela S.A., the nation's state-owned oil company, the release reported. Both Orekhov and Uss were taken into custody Oct.17. They will now be subject to extradition proceedings.
“Today we announce the dismantling of a sophisticated network consisting of at least five Russian nationals and two Venezuelan nationals, each of whom are directly linked to corrupt state-owned enterprises, who knowingly sought to conceal the theft of U.S. military technology and profit off black market oil," Michael J. Driscoll, FBI assistant director-in-charge, said in the release. "This network schemed to procure sophisticated technology in direct support of a floundering Russian Federation military industrial complex. While America's adversaries may seek innovative means to undermine the United States, they will continuously be met with the FBI's resolve through tirelessly uncovering and overcoming all threats to U.S. national security, no matter where they may seek safe haven."
“Webs of shell companies, cryptocurrency and an international network of fraudsters failed to shield Orekhov and his cronies from apprehension by U.S. law enforcement," Task Force KleptoCapture Director Andrew Adams said, ccording to the release. "Stamping out evasion of export controls on military technology is among the Task Force’s highest priorities, and today’s arrests reflects the power of those controls when enforced by a dedicated team of expert agents and devoted foreign partners.”
