Finland Probing Forwarder for Illegally Shipping Dual-Use Goods to Russia
Finnish customs authorities are investigating a Helsinki-based forwarding company for a yearslong alleged scheme to violate sanctions by illegally delivering about 300,000 euros', or about $350,000, worth of goods to Russia.
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Finland's customs agency said it suspects the company of delivering a "significant amount of sanctioned products" to Russia, including industrial bearings and motors, from 2022 to 2025. The company likely exported some items through third countries, the agency said, but it also tried to export dual-use goods directly to Russia without an export license. Finland said it intercepted at least one "consignment" of dual-use goods before it left the country.
Most of the shipments to third countries left the EU from either Lithuania or Poland and were sent to Belarus or were destined for "Central Asian states," such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, said Hanna Koskenranta, a Finnish customs investigator. Other routes went through Bulgaria, she said. A "significant consignee" of the goods is a company sanctioned by both the EU and the U.S.
Finland said the forwarder's business mostly involved Russia before Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022 and the country was hit with a range of sanctions. After the invasion, the forwarder began sending most of its exports to states surrounding Russia, the customs agency said, adding that there's "reason to suspect that the company has acted as an intermediary between European and Russian companies."
The agency added that it's working with investigative authorities in different countries because the forwarder used "foreign procurement channels in its activities." It said the "one main suspect" is the Russian-born head of the company, who's living in Finland. When the preliminary investigation has been completed, the case will be forwarded to the Prosecution District of Southern Finland for consideration of charges.