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German Investigation Uncovers Shadow Network Smuggling Sanctioned Goods to Russia
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An investigation by Bild has uncovered what reporters describe as a “shadow” logistics network in Germany that allegedly helped move sanctioned goods from Europe to Moscow, bypassing EU restrictions imposed after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Bild reported on January 25.
The system was organized by a former senior manager of the German subsidiary of Russia’s state postal service, Russian Post, and continued operating despite an ongoing probe by Berlin prosecutors into sanctions violations.
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This is not an isolated case. Earlier it was reported that a Moscow car dealership that opened during the war against Ukraine was circumventing international sanctions by selling premium vehicles, including the Tesla Cybertruck, Rolls-Royce Cullinan, and Porsche Cayenne Coupe while importing through Kyrgyzstan.
Authorities have been investigating RusPost GmbH since 2022 over shipments containing prohibited items such as electronics, cash, and jewelry, according to Bild.
BILD reporters tested the network by sending several parcels from Germany to Moscow, secretly fitted with GPS trackers. The packages—declared as books and clothing but containing disabled electronic components—were accepted for cash payment, without receipts.
The trackers showed the parcels moving from collection points in Germany to a warehouse near Berlin’s BER airport, then onward by truck through Poland and Belarus to Russia, ultimately reaching Moscow.
The investigation found that shipping labels from UzPost were used, despite UzPost not being licensed to operate in Germany. BILD cited insiders who claimed there was a confidential arrangement between the Russian and Uzbek postal services, allowing Uzbek documentation to be used as cover. German regulators said they are reviewing whether this constituted an illegal use of foreign postal credentials.
BILD reported that a former RusPost executive, identified only as “Dimitri V.,” played a key behind-the-scenes role in the logistics company now handling the shipments. Although a previous criminal case against him was dropped in 2024 for lack of evidence, prosecutors are now seeking to indict another top manager in connection with the alleged sanctions evasion.
Previously, German law enforcement had opened an investigation into whether a German supplier may have violated sanctions through exports that Ukrainian journalists linked to materials used in Russia’s Shahed-type attack drone production.
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