National Security Division’s Post

New York Man and Canadian National Plead Guilty to Multimillion-Dollar Export Control Scheme Defendants Exported Millions of Dollars of Electronics Used by Russia in Missiles and Drones Nikolay Goltsev, 38, of Montreal, and Salimdzhon Nasriddinov, 53, of Brooklyn, New York, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit export control violations for their roles in a global procurement scheme on behalf of sanctioned Russian companies, including Russian military companies. Some of the electronic components shipped by the defendants were later found in seized Russian weapons platforms and signals intelligence equipment in Ukraine. “The defendants shipped millions of dollars of U.S. electronics critical to the missiles and drones Russia uses to attack Ukraine, and they now face U.S. prison time for their scheme,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “As Russia continues to wage its unjust war of aggression against Ukraine, the Department remains committed to holding accountable those who fuel Putin’s war machine.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/g5Cxvmnn

President of Freight Forwarding Company Indicted for Allegedly Smuggling Goods from the United States to Russia A citizen of Belarus and lawful permanent resident of the United States has been indicted for allegedly smuggling goods from the United States into Russia without a license. Kirill Gordei, 34, of Hallandale, Florida, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States; one count of smuggling goods from the United States; and one count of export of a spectrometer, which is a commerce control item. Gordei was arrested on June 30 in Florida and made an initial appearance in the Southern District of Florida today. He will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date. “As alleged, Gordei defrauded U.S. government export regulators and smuggled advanced scientific technology to Russian customers, placing personal profit over national security,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Justice Department will use every available tool to disrupt illicit supply chains used to illegally funnel sophisticated technologies to Russia and other hostile powers.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/gQ_QzynF

Russian National Charged for Conspiring with Russian Military Intelligence to Destroy Ukrainian Government Computer Systems and Data Defendant is Alleged to Have Assisted with an Attack in Advance of Russia’s February 2022 Invasion of Ukraine A federal grand jury in Maryland returned an indictment yesterday charging Amin Timovich Stigal (Амин Тимович Стигал), 22, a Russian citizen, with conspiracy to hack into and destroy computer systems and data. In advance of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, targets included Ukrainian Government systems and data with no military or defense-related roles. Later targets included computer systems in countries that were providing support to Ukraine, including the United States. Stigal remains at large. “As alleged, the defendant conspired with Russian military intelligence on the eve of Russia’s unjust and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine to launch cyberattacks targeting the Ukrainian government and later targeting its allies, including the United States.” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department will continue to stand with Ukraine on every front in its fight against Russia’s war of aggression, including by holding accountable those who support Russia’s malicious cyber activity.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/gQZTBvww

WikiLeaks Founder Pleads Guilty and Is Sentenced for Conspiring to Obtain and Disclose Classified National Defense Information Julian P. Assange, 52, the founder of WikiLeaks, pleaded guilty today to conspiring with Chelsea Manning, at that time a U.S. Army intelligence analyst, to unlawfully obtain and disclose classified documents relating to the national defense. After obtaining classified national defense information from Manning, and aware of the harm that dissemination of such national defense information would cause, Assange disclosed this information on WikiLeaks. The guilty plea concludes a criminal matter that dates back to March 2018, when Assange was first indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia. There, and in superseding indictments, Assange was charged with conspiring with Manning, then a “Top Secret” U.S. security clearance holder, to further Manning’s unlawful acquisition and transmission of bulk classified information, including Manning’s use of a government computer to illegally download hundreds of thousands of classified documents and transmit them without authorization to WikiLeaks. Read more: https://lnkd.in/g7e-wUgR

“King” of Violent Haitian Gang Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for Gun Smuggling and Money Laundering Joly Germine, 31, of Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, was sentenced today to 420 months in prison for his role in a gunrunning conspiracy that smuggled firearms to Haiti in violation of U.S. export laws, and the laundering of ransoms paid for U.S. hostages held by the notoriously violent Haitian gang known as 400 Mawozo. Eliande Tunis, 46, of Pompano Beach, Florida, who styled herself as Germine’s “wife” and was described at trial as the “Queen” of 400 Mawozo, was sentenced on June 5, to 150 months in prison for her role in the conspiracy. Two other defendants in the conspiracy were also sentenced to jail time for their involvement. The conspiracy resulted in the purchase in the United States of at least 24 firearms, including weapons designed for the military and close-quarters combat such as AK-47s, AR-15s, an M4 Carbine rifle, an M1A rifle, and a .50 caliber rifle, which were smuggled from the United States to the gang in Haiti to further their criminal activities. Those firearms were bought using funds laundered from the proceeds of the hostage taking for ransom of U.S. citizens in Haiti in 2021. “A leader of the Haitian gang known as 400 Mawozo will now spend 35 years in prison for a scheme to smuggle guns from the United States to Haiti using the proceeds extorted from kidnapping American citizens,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The leaders of violent gangs in Haiti that terrorize Americans citizens in order to fuel their criminal activity will be met with the full force of the Justice Department.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/giEHAchT

Minnesota Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Providing Material Support to ISIS 🔗: https://lnkd.in/gXU6gVsR