Russia – European Sanctions Enforcement

June 11, 2025June 11, 2025 by Mark Handley

Sweden, Estonia and Lithuania: investigations opened into funding provided by Russian designated person

Further to our earlier post regarding an investigation in Latvia into the activities of the designated Russian state entity “Pravfond”, it has now been reported that a number of other investigations are ongoing in relation to this entity’s activities:

1) An investigation has been commenced in Sweden in relation to a school that had associations with Pravfond;

2) In Estonia a multiple investigations (by the criminal authorities and the bar association) have been opened in relation to lawyers who accepted funds from Pravfond; and

3) In Lithuania a criminal investigation has been opened (as well as one by the bar association) into lawyers who took funds from Pravfond.

June 11, 2025June 11, 2025 by Mark Handley

Estonia – conviction and 2-year sentence for making economic resources available to a designated person

Further to our earlier post, it has been reported that journalist Svetlana Burtseva has been convicted of breaches of the EU’s sanctions.

The offence was committed by making “economic resources” available to a designated person. The designated person was the sanctioned media outlet Rossiya Segodnya.

The “economic resources” were articles and photos written and taken by the journalist.

Ms Burtseva was sentenced to 2 years in jail for this offence.

Separately the same journalist was also convicted of treason and given a 4-year sentence for the treason offence.

June 3, 2025June 3, 2025 by Mark Handley

Latvia – 61 new criminal prosecutions for sanctions breaches commenced in 2025

In a previous post from April we reported on the 2024 annual report for Latvia’s FIU.

This included the statistic that 392 criminal proceedings had been commenced between 2022 and the end of 2024.

In an interview recently published with Global Investigations Review (behind a paywall), the head of Latvia’s National Customs Board has stated that Latvia has now brought a total of 453 criminal prosecutions.

This indicates that 61 new prosecutions have been brought so far in 2025.

June 3, 2025June 3, 2025 by Mark Handley

Germany – 41 criminal prosecutions for luxury car exports to Russia

The publication Business Insider has conducted a survey of the enforcement activity conducted by Prosecutors’ Offices across Germany in relation to the export of German cars, and published the results (behind a paywall).

A total of 14 different Prosecutors’ Offices confirmed that they have brought, or are bringing, criminal prosecutions in relation to the alleged export of luxury cars from Germany to Russia in breach of the EU’s sanctions.

The total number of prosecutions reported to date was 41.

May 28, 2025May 28, 2025 by Mark Handley

Latvia – sanctions investigation launched into activities of Russian state funder

It is being reported that the Latvia State Security Service has launched an investigation into the activities of the sanctioned entity “Pravfond”.

Pravfond is said to be a funding conduit by which the Russian state provides support for promoting Russia’s influence and interests abroad. It was designated under the EU’s Russian sanctioned in mid 2023.

The allegation is that it has continued to operate and provide funding despite being subject to the asset freeze.

May 27, 2025May 27, 2025 by Mark Handley

Latvia – investigation launched into Russian industrial exports

It is being reported that Latvia’s State Security Service (the VDD) has launched a criminal investigation into alleged exports of sanctioned machinery and equipment from the KLC Group to buyers in Russia via Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

The investigation follows the publication of a media investigation by The Insider.

The exports, said to be equipment used for military manufacturing, are said to be valued at $1.3m and to have included products from a number of western manufacturers.

May 27, 2025May 27, 2025 by Mark Handley

Netherlands – prison sentence for breaching Russian sanctions nearly doubled on appeal

Further to our earlier post that the Dutch Public Prosecution Service had brought an appeal seeking to extend an 18-month prison sentence for exporting sanctioned goods to Russia, the Court of Appeal in The Hague has now issued its judgment.

While most of the judgment relates to the issue of the amount of the “proceeds of crime” to be confiscated from the convicted defendant (reducing the level of confiscation from €72,697.71 to €71,582.95), the custodial sentence was also increased to detention for 1080 days, which is just under the 3 years sought by the Prosecution.

May 21, 2025May 21, 2025 by Mark Handley

Poland – seizure of 5 tons of aviation tyres bound for Russia/Belarus

Poland’s National Tax Administration has issued a press release, announcing the seizure of 5 tons of aviation tyres.

The discovery was made through a routine inspection of a truck by the Lublin Customs and Tax office.

The declared goods were automobile tyres. The sender of the tyres was an unnamed company in Spain, and the declared recipient was said to be in Azerbaijan.

The goods were detained and criminal proceedings have been instituted.

May 16, 2025May 27, 2025 by Mark Handley

Germany – raids related to sanctioned car exports to Russia

German Customs has issued a press release relating to raids conducted in Frankfurt am Main on 13 May 2025.

The raids saw the seizure of 21 luxury cars valued at approximately €1.3m.

The alleged culprit is a 39-year old of Kazakh origin. It is alleged that more than 700 cars have been exported to Russia and Belarus through third countries., valued at c. €25m.

May 13, 2025May 21, 2025 by Mark Handley

Poland – multiple raids and arrests for suspected import of timber in breach of Russia and Belarus sanctions

Poland’s National Tax Administration yesterday issued a press release detailing raids and arrests in three provinces.

The three arrested individuals have been charged and are in pre-trial detention. They are suspected of importing birch plywood from Belarus and Russia in breach of EU sanctions.

The Tax Administration has conducted a number of similar investigations in recent months, which have not previously been included in this blog:

24 April 2025 – The Pomeranian branch of Poland’s National Tax Administration has conducted raids in Gdynia. Thirty pallets of timber suspected to have been imported from Belarus and Russia were seized.

9 April 2025 – The Pomeranian branch of Poland’s National Tax Administration has conducted inspections of timber purportedly imported from Tunisia at the Baltic Container Terminal in Gdansk, and seized over PLN 1 million in timber on suspicion that it was imported from Belarus and Russia in breach of EU sanctions.

28 February 2025 – The Lublin branch of the National Tax Administration has seized 1800 pallets of plywood suspected of being imported from Belarus and Russia via China and Kazakhstan. The press release adds that 15 sets of proceedings are being prepared as a result of the seizures valued at PLN 3.2m.

November 2024 – raids were conducted in seven provinces in relation to an ongoing investigation into suspected imports of timber from Belarus and Russia in breach of Eu sanctions.