It was discovered that an Instagrammer with a hobby of traveling around the world was smuggling missile and drone semiconductor parts worth 1 billion yen to Russia.

On February 12, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Kristina Przyreva, a resident of Canada, was subject to Russian sanctions for purchasing parts worth $7 million (approximately 1.05 billion yen) used in UAVs (drones) and guided missiles. They announced that they had admitted to being involved in the plan to send it to the organization. Przyrewa was also an Instagrammer who traveled around the world. If sentenced at trial, Przyrewa faces up to 20 years in prison.

Eastern District of New York | Russian-Canadian National Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Launder Money from Scheme to Send UAV and Missile Components to Russia in Violation of US Sanctions | United States Department of Justice
https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/russian-canadian-national-pleads-guilty-conspiracy-launder-money-scheme-send-uav-and

Globetrotting Millennial Woman Pleads Guilty to Sending $7M of Drone, Missile Parts to Russia
https://www.vice.com/en/article/v7bnk3/globetrotting-millennial-woman-pleads-guilty-to-sending-dollar7m-of-drone-missile-parts-to-russia

Special Agent Erin Keegan said, ``Puzilewa and others are believed to have shipped millions of dollars (billions of yen) worth of American-made electronic equipment to support the Russian government in its attack on Ukraine. 'She was involved in a money laundering scheme involving 298 shipments of restricted technology valued at $7 million to Russia.'

Semiconductors are essential components for missiles and drones. The US government has suspended semiconductor giants Intel and AMD from selling semiconductors to Russia as part of sanctions against Russia for its military invasion of Ukraine.

Intel and AMD suspend semiconductor sales to Russia, TSMC also joins sanctions, potentially affecting domestically produced chips in Russia - GIGAZINE

However, it seems that American-made semiconductor parts were still flowing into Russia, and American-made electronic parts and integrated circuits have been found in Russian weapons and UAVs seized in Ukraine.

According to the Department of Justice, Przyreva and her husband, Nikolai Gortsev, lived in Montreal, Canada, and had been doing business with Salimzon Nasridinov, a resident of Brooklyn, New York. Przyreva and others flew from Canada to New York, purchased parts through shell companies in Hong Kong and New York, and shipped them to Russia. Defendant Przyrewa appears to have used numerous bank accounts to conduct financial transactions and launder money in order to smuggle the parts.

However, the New York Homeland Security Investigation Agency and the FBI tracked the flow of funds, and Przyrewa and others were arrested in October 2023. According to the Justice Department, Przyrewa had opened accounts in more than 80 names to deposit $3 million (approximately 450 million yen), and when the defendants were arrested at a New York hotel, they had 20,000 in cash. He owned a dollar (approximately 3 million yen). A total of $1.68 million (approximately 252 million yen) was also seized in connection with the export plan.

Defendant Przyrewa is also an Instagrammer who travels around the world, and uploads photos taken at her travel destinations to her Instagram account. In her profile, she wrote, ``I have lived in Canada for half of my life, and I speak English, French, and Russian.'' Instagram updates stopped on October 21, 2023, a few days before his arrest.

Kristina Puzyreva (@kr.isti7876) • Instagram photos and videos
https://www.instagram.com/kr.isti7876/

'Kristina Przyreva voluntarily played a key role in a global smuggling scheme that ultimately led to the acquisition of equipment authorized by the Russian government for the war effort,' said James Smith, FBI Assistant Director for Investigations. 'Mr. Przyrewa chose to break the law to line his own pockets and endangered national security.'

Although Przyreva admitted the crime, charges against the other defendants are pending at the time of writing.