Overview

• Three suspects were arrested on June 10 in Valencia and Alicante in connection with the contraband operation targeting embargoed machine tools.
• Two detainees, including a Russian-Georgian couple identified as ringleaders, have been ordered into pretrial detention by the Juzgado Central 2 de la Audiencia Nacional while a third remains free under precautionary measures.
• Investigators linked the scheme to a shell company in Sant Vicent del Raspeig that falsified documentation and shipping labels to move automated tooling equipment worth hundreds of thousands of euros.
• The network concealed shipments through multiple European customs and false transit stops in Turkey to disguise the true destination of dual-use machinery vital for Russia’s drone and aircraft production.
• Raids yielded computers, electronic devices and paperwork now under forensic analysis to bolster contraband charges as part of ongoing legal proceedings.