Europol announces arrest of Dutch national accused of Russian sanctions evasion

On October 7, 2022, Europol announced the arrest of a Dutch national for allegedly supplying microchips to companies and entities in Russia in violation of  EU trade sanctions against Russia. Europol reports that an investigation conducted by the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD), Europol’s European Financial and Economic Crime Centre, uncovered that a 55-year-old resident in the east of the Netherlands had supplied Russian companies with microchips that can be used for the production of weapons – microchips that Russia’s arms industry has been struggling to obtain.  The Dutch FIOD arrested the suspect on September 27, 2022 based on allegations that he falsely indicated that the microchips were intended for a destination other than Russia in order to circumvent EU-imposed trade sanctions.

Europol Press Release