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Sam
Bhambhani, 55, of North Attleboro, Mass., and Maxim Teslenko,
35, of Moscow, were each indicted on one count of smuggling and
one count of conspiracy to violate and evade export controls,
commit smuggling, and defraud the United States.
“This case underscores our unwavering commitment to enforcing
U.S. export laws and safeguarding national security,” Acting
United States Attorney Joshua Levy said in a statement. “The
defendants are alleged to have engaged in a sophisticated scheme
to evade export controls, deceiving the government about the
true destination of sensitive technology and putting critical
national interests at risk.”
Cases like the one involving Bhambhani and Teslenko are
relatively common. In January, a Kansas businessman pleaded
guilty to illegally exporting sensitive aviation technology to
Russian companies in violation of U.S. sanctions. Two years ago,
the Biden administration announced a series of criminal charges
and sanctions related to a complicated scheme to procure
military technologies from U.S. manufacturers and illegally
supply them to Russia for its war in Ukraine.
From 2015 to 2021, prosecutors alleged that Bhambhani and
Teslenko conspired to export laser welding machines to the Ural
Electromechanical Plant, or UEMZ, in Yekaterinburg, Russia. The
export documents were allegedly falsified to conceal the fact
that the equipment was going to UEMZ.
UEMZ is a subsidiary of Rosatom, a Russian state corporation
that oversaw the country's civilian and military nuclear
program.
No one answered at a phone number listed for Bhambhani and it
was unclear if he has a lawyer. Bhambhani was arrested Sept. 9
and released following a court appearance. Teslenko remains at
large overseas.
If convicted, the pair face a sentence on the smuggling charge
of up to 10 years in prison, three years supervised release and
a fine of up to $250,000. The conspiracy charge carries a
sentence of up to five years in prison, three years supervised
release and a fine of up to $250,000.
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