Alexander Mamonov, a Russian national living in South Florida, was convicted on 12 counts after prosecutors say he secretly funneled nearly $1 million in U.S. aircraft parts to Russia and state-owned Aeroflot, repeatedly lying to American suppliers and hiding transactions to evade export controls put in place after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Federal jurors found Mamonov guilty on charges that include conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act, illegal exports, smuggling, submitting false export information, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is 62 and a former Aeroflot employee, and prosecutors say his scheme depended on falsified paperwork and fake destinations to mask shipments bound for Russia.
The Commerce Department tightened export controls on Russia after 2022 and issued a temporary denial order barring Aeroflot from receiving U.S.-origin goods, measures intended to choke off American technology that could keep Russian military and civilian aircraft operational. U.S. officials determined Aeroflot was effectively an arm of the Kremlin, making shipments to the airline a direct circumvention of U.S. policy and sanctions.
Prosecutors say Mamonov and an alleged co-conspirator, Ignat Vakorin, misled suppliers by labeling packages as headed to places like the United Arab Emirates and China, while routing the parts to Russia and Aeroflot. Vakorin, indicted alongside Mamonov in April 2025, remains a fugitive and is believed to be in Russia, out of reach of American law enforcement.
Authorities describe a financial trail used to conceal the scheme, with transactions structured to obscure the true destination of purchases and shipments. Prosecutors put the total value of parts acquired and sent at more than $900,000, and they note similar scams have been prosecuted before, showing a pattern of bad actors attempting to exploit U.S. supply chains.
U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida summed it up after the verdict: “Russia cannot evade American sanctions and export controls by routing its purchases through South Florida. You cannot put a fake destination on a shipping label and make American export laws disappear.” That statement was highlighted at trial to underline the idea that deliberate deception to defeat sanctions is a serious federal crime.
The FBI’s Miami Field Office led the investigation with support from the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security, and prosecutors named Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Paul Cronin and Trial Attorney Brett Ruff as the attorneys handling the case. The government emphasized that enforcement of export controls is a national security priority, especially when government-owned foreign airlines are involved.
Roman Rozhavsky, assistant director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division, warned that the verdict should act as a deterrent: “The FBI and its partners will continue to prioritize the enforcement of export laws and sanctions to defend the homeland. Let this verdict serve as a warning to anyone considering smuggling U.S. technology to our adversaries.” That language framed the trial as part of a broader push to keep sensitive U.S. aviation technology from bolstering hostile states.
Mamonov is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 20 by U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams, and the penalties for violating the Export Control Reform Act can be severe. Convictions under that statute carry up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $1 million per count, a statutory framework meant to impose serious consequences on those who intentionally help adversaries obtain controlled goods.
Prosecutors pointed out that the scheme was not unique: they referenced earlier cases in 2024 where other Russian nationals in Florida pleaded guilty to similar scams involving false destinations and illicit shipments to Russia. The message from law enforcement is clear—lying about where goods are going to get them into the hands of a sanctioned entity will trigger criminal prosecution.
With one defendant convicted and another a fugitive, authorities say they are still pursuing leads and will continue efforts to hold anyone accountable who helps route U.S. technology to hostile actors. The case underscores how export control enforcement and aggressive prosecution remain essential tools for protecting U.S. national security and ensuring that sanctions have real effect.
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