Smuggling Ring Survives Arrest

Russian caught in FBI sting moved supplies supporting Moscow's war effort

- AUSTIN RAMZY

It took the promise of access to contraband, an FBI front company and help from Fiji, but U.S. investigators, in a tricky sting operation, picked off a supplier of parts Moscow needs for its war in Ukraine.

The smuggler, Maxim Marchenko, was sentenced in July by a New York court to three years in prison for his role in procuring militarygrade electronics for Russia.

The Americans missed their ultimate goal, however: More than seven months after Marchenko's arrest, his network was still in business, continuing to feed Russian companies with ties to its military, according to research and a review of trade and procurement data by C4ADS, a Washington-based global security nonprofit.

The prosecution of the 53year-old cast light on the extent of U.S. efforts to enforce sanctions that were imposed after Russia invaded Ukraine nearly three years ago. It also showed how difficult it is to stanch the flow of equipment to Russia through China, which the U.S. accuses of helping Moscow sustain the military production it needs to continue the war.

Russia, with its domestic war supplies dwindling, relies on foreign help for its offensive in Ukraine-most recently in an alliance with North Korea, which has given Moscow thousands of troops and boosted arms shipments.

Hong Kong's role as a transshipment point for Russia-bound goods is backed by Chinese policy: Beijing rejects what it calls unilateral sanctions imposed by the U.S.

Marchenko, who hails from Moscow, worked in Hong Kong for more than a decade, running mostly electronicstrading businesses out of a small office in the crowded Sham Shui Po district.

Among his companies was one he started with his wife, Diana Izutkina, importing caviar, cheese and candy to Hong Kong from Eastern Europe.