The 4 Russians arrested individuals, Salimdzhon Nasriddinov, 52, a dual citizen of Russia and Tajikistan residing in the US, along with Nikolai Goltsev, 37, and Kristina Puzyreva, 32, residing in Canada, face charges of smuggling, conspiracy to violate sanctions, and conspiracy to commit fraud.
4 Russians arrested in New York in connection with an alleged scheme to smuggle electronics worth approximately US$7 million from the United States for the Russian army
Simultaneously, a separate indictment has been issued on four counts, implicating individuals in an illegal export scheme to procure electronics for Russian companies involved in the development and production of drones used in Russia‘s conflict with Ukraine.
The newly accused defendants are Nikita Arkhipov, 39, and Artem Oloviannikov, 37, both from St. Petersburg, and Nikolai Grigorev, 36, from Brooklyn. Grigorev has also been apprehended in New York, while Arkhipov and Oloviannikov remain at large.
These 4 Russians arrested individuals utilized a Brooklyn-based company, Quality Life Cue LLC (QLC), to acquire components for Russian drones, destined for SMT-iLogic, an entity linked to the Orlan-10 drone production initiative that the US sanctioned in May 2023.
The defendants had transferred approximately US$273,000 to QLC accounts, nearly all of which was allocated for the purchase of necessary electronics in Brooklyn
Additionally, discussions were held on methods to circumvent sanctions against Russia, including the involvement of intermediaries in third countries.
In June 2023, law enforcement officers, following a court-authorized warrant, searched Grigorev’s Brooklyn residence, seizing over 11,500 electronic components intended for export to Russia.
The FBI and the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security are leading the investigation of the 4 Russians arrested. Last week, an entrepreneur was apprehended in Germany on suspicion of providing engines for Orlan-10 drones to Russia, in violation of sanctions imposed after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
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