Russian national Oleg Nikitin was sentenced by a U.S. court to 28 months in prison, as reported by TASS, citing his lawyer Alexey Tarasov. The sentence was passed by the Southern District Court of Georgia and essentially equates to the time Nikitin has already spent in detention awaiting trial. This means that Nikitin is likely to be released soon and will subsequently be deported to Russia.
“Oleg was sentenced to 28 months in prison, roughly equal to the time already served when accounting for good behavior. The judge also issued an order for deportation,” Tarasov stated. He emphasized the positive outcome, noting that “Nikitin will soon be reunited with his family – his wife and children,” and that this was a favorable result compared to a potential four-to-five-year sentence.
Nikitin, the general director of the Russian company KS Engineering, previously admitted in court to purchasing a power turbine for $17 million on behalf of a Russian state company, facilitated by an Italian intermediary. This turbine, intended for deep-sea drilling in the Arctic, falls under equipment categories prohibited from sale to Russia by American sanctions.
Court documents show that Nikitin acknowledged conspiring with others to bypass U.S. sanctions. These sanctions forbid exporting equipment that could significantly enhance military capabilities or nuclear weapons proliferation in other countries or threaten U.S. national security.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, a Russian government-controlled company instructed KS Engineering to acquire the power turbine from an American manufacturer. To execute the purchase, Nikitin and his subordinate Anton Cheremukhin engaged Italian counterparts who, in turn, contacted an American to organize the delivery. The conspirators concealed the turbine’s true purchaser and provided false documents to the manufacturer and U.S. authorities, falsely claiming the turbine was intended for use in Atlanta.
Source: RTVi, September 22, 2021
A U.S. Court Sentenced Russian Businessman Oleg Nikitin to 28 Months in Prison
