A Russian national arrested in Arizona has been sentenced to prison for his involvement in an illegal export scheme, authorities announced Wednesday.
Oleg Sergeyevhich Patsulya, 46, has been sentenced to nearly six years in jail for his role in a “conspiracy to send airplane technology and launder money in connection with the export scheme,” according to the US Department of Justice.
Vasilii Sergeyevich Besedin, Patsulya’s co-conspirator in the plan, received a two-year prison sentence in December.
Patsulya, of Miami, Florida, earlier pled guilty to “conspiracy to export items from the United States without a license in violation of the Export Control Reform Act and conspiracy to commit international money laundering” in April 2024, according to authorities.
Why were the Russian nationals sentenced to prison?
According to authorities, in May 2022, Patsulya and Besedin collaborated with others to obtain orders for aviation parts so that Russian purchasers could purchase them.
Patsulya and Besedin stated they were aware that the commodities required a Department of Commerce license to export.
Prosecutors said Patsulya and Besedin planned to export shipments of a brake system made of carbon discs for a Boeing 737 jet as part of the plot.
When they tried to obtain the brake system, Besedin and Patsulya provided fraudulent information, claiming that the parts were intended for countries apart from Russia. The United States was able to delay shipments of brake assembly technology before they were exported.
As part of their pleas, Patsulya and Besedin, who were arrested in Arizona on May 11, admitted to attempting to conceal the exports and the identities of those purchasing the airplane components.
Judge Dominic W. Lanza of the United States District Court presided over the sentencing hearing in this case.
