Two men from Kansas have been arrested by the US Department of Justice on suspicion of exporting aviation-related technology to Russia and offering repair services for the equipment.
AP News reports that Cyril Gregory Buyanovsky, 59, and Douglas Robertson, 55, are charged with conspiracy, exporting controlled goods without a license, fabricating and failing to file electronic export information, and smuggling goods breaching US law.
Breaking US Sanctions on Russia
As stated in the unsealed indictment, Buyanovsky and Robertson owned and operated KanRus Trading Co., which supplied sophisticated aircraft electronics to Russian companies and offered repair services to customers worldwide who use Russian-built aircraft.
Since 2020, the pair has been accused of circumventing US export laws by concealing and misrepresenting the actual end users and destinations of their exports and shipping equipment via third-party countries.
The charges come as the United States has significantly increased sanctions and financial penalties against Russia since it invaded Ukraine.
Following Russia's war against Ukraine, the US and its allies imposed sweeping sanctions, export controls, and other measures.
In response to Russia's aggression in the region, the US Treasury has already imposed over 2,500 sanctions since February 2022.
The unprecedented costs levied on Russia have been coordinated with more than 30 countries imposing sanctions or similar measures on Russia following its war.
State actors such as Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea are attempting to "take advantage of rapid advances in technology," AP News quotes Matthew S. Axelrod, assistant secretary for export enforcement at the Bureau of Industry and Security of the US Department of Commerce. He added that sending sensitive technologies to these countries is "top of our list from an enforcement perspective."
Since the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, US officials have stated that they will increase enforcement and sanctions against individuals and organizations that aid Russia in acquiring weapons and technology to strengthen its military.
Serious Penalty
A DOJ press release tells us that the maximum sentence for each count of exporting controlled goods without a license is 20 years in prison, up to 10 years in prison for smuggling, and up to five years for conspiracy and falsifying export information. Buyanovsky and Robertson could be facing 35 years of prison time.
The provided documents did not reveal the names of the accused's attorneys, and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for their information.
The investigation was coordinated by the Justice Department's Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force responsible for upholding the broad sanctions, export controls, and economic countermeasures imposed by the United States in response to Russia's military invasion of Ukraine.
On March 2, 2022, the Deputy Attorney General announced that the task force would continue to utilize all of the department's tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the United States government in response to Russian military aggression.
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