Former FBI agent arrested for allegedly helping Russian oligarch circumvent US sanctions
'24.01.2023'
Nadezhda Verbitskaya
U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York has filed five counts of charges against former FBI agent Charles McGonigal and government interpreter Sergei Shestakov. They are accused of violating and conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. And also in conspiracy to launder money, reports US Department of Justice.
The accused were arrested on 21 January. According to the indictment, McGonigal and Shestakov violated US sanctions by agreeing to provide services to a Russian businessman, Oleg Deripaska, who is under sanctions. They both previously worked with Deripaska, trying to get sanctions lifted from him.
The heart of the matter
In 2014, the President of the United States issued Executive Order 13660 declaring a state of emergency in the United States in connection with the situation in Ukraine. To address this emergency, the President has frozen all property of individuals who are responsible for or complicit in actions or policies that threaten the security, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine. Sanctions also apply to persons who financially assist, sponsor or provide support to individuals or entities involved in such activities. Executive Order 13660 and the regulations issued pursuant to it prohibit the giving or receiving of any funds, goods or services to any person on this sanctions list.
On the subject: New York court decides to confiscate $5,4 million from Russian oligarch's account
On April 6, 2018, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury (“OFAC”) included Oleg Deripaska on the sanctions list.
Charles McGonigal is a former special agent who headed the FBI's Counterintelligence Division in New York. He retired in 2018. While at the FBI, McGonigal oversaw and participated in investigations of Russian oligarchs, including Deripaska. Sergei Shestakov is a former Soviet and Russian diplomat who later became a US citizen and translator into Russian for courts and government agencies.
In 2021, McGonigal and Shestakov colluded to provide services to Deripaska in violation of U.S. sanctions imposed on Deripaska in 2018.
After negotiations with Deripaska's agent, they conducted an investigation into a Russian oligarch competing with Deripaska. For this, they received money from Deripaska, but through shell companies and false contracts.
McGonigal and Shestakov in 2019 tried to achieve the lifting of sanctions against Deripaska. Details of these efforts are not disclosed by the investigators.
Shestakov is also accused of lying to US federal agents. During interrogation in 2021, he lied about his real connection to McGonigal.
The charges brought against them carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The maximum possible sentences are given here for informational purposes only, the sentence will be decided by the court.
