Sarasota man charged with smuggling electronics into Russia

A Russian citizen living in Sarasota has been arrested and charged with smuggling microelectronics with possible military applications into Russia.

Charges against Denis Postovoy, 44, include conspiring to violate the Export Control Reform Act, to commit smuggling, to commit money laundering, and to defraud the United States.

Postovoy was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals on Sept. 16 and is currently being held in the Pinellas County Jail. He is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 19 in U.S. District Court in Tampa.

Image courtesy of Pinellas County Jail

An indictment alleges that as early as February 2022, Postovoy, through a web of companies that he owns or operates in Russia, Hong Kong, and elsewhere, purchased the electronics from U.S.-based distributors and exported them to Russia without the required licenses from the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The exported electronics can be used in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones), the U.S. Attorney’s Office says in a news release.

Postovoy’s companies included WowCube HK Limited, JST Group Hong Kong, Jove HK Limited, all based in Hong Kong, and the Vector Group in Russia, the news release says. 

State of Florida corporate records also indicate Postovoy was listed as a manager of SRQ Boat Club LLC, which filed for voluntary dissolution Sept. 2.

Postovoy allegedly concealed and misstated the true end users and final destinations of the microelectronics by submitting false information on documents, the U.S. Attorney’s Office says. 

He transshipped items that were ultimately destined for Russia through intermediary destinations, including Hong Kong, Switzerland, and elsewhere, and received payments in U.S. dollars from foreign bank accounts, the indictment charges.

His companies allegedly transferred funds for the purchase and shipment of the goods through bank accounts in Hong Kong, Russia and elsewhere to bank accounts in the United States, including bank accounts maintained by the U.S. suppliers of microelectronics and other sensitive technologies.

If convicted of violating the Export Control Reform Act, Postovoy could face up to 20 years in prison and up to a $1 million fine. 

This article originally appeared on sister site YourObserver.com.