The Stuttgart Higher Regional Court sentenced a 56-year-old man to seven years in prison for selling equipment to a Russian arms manufacturer for the production of sniper rifles in violation of existing sanctions, reported Spiegel.
The man was arrested in August 2023, and charges were filed in November of the same year. The export included equipment that can be used for the production of sniper rifles and other weapons. Part of the shipments was sent to Russia through Switzerland, and another part through Lithuania, with customs data being falsified.
According to the federal prosecutor's office, the accused headed a manufacturing and trading company specializing in the production of modern machines. He had longstanding ties with Russian arms manufacturers. Despite the European Union sanctions imposed on Russia in 2014, he signed contracts in 2015 to supply six machines to one of the Russian arms manufacturers. In doing so, the man deceived the authorities about the recipient and the true purpose of the machines. According to Spiegel, the man made a profit of 2.1 million euros from these deals. A Swiss holding company controlled by the accused, which earned about 3 million euros, was also involved in the deals. According to the publication, these amounts have been confiscated.