Joint operation by the Tax Agency and the National Police

• In the operation, three people were arrested who had exported machinery classified as dual-use material worth hundreds of thousands of euros.

• They managed to evade the established controls by sending the merchandise through different European customs, declaring a third country as the fictitious end-use, from which the material was re-exported to the Russian Federation, the true end-use and subject to embargo.

June 18, 2025.- Customs Surveillance officers from the Tax Agency and National Police officers, in collaboration with the National Intelligence Center (CNI), have arrested three people for their alleged involvement in the smuggling of prohibited goods and dual-use materials. The arrests took place on June 10 in the province of Valencia, and the headquarters of a commercial company in the Alicante town of Sant Vicent del Raspeig were searched. Various computer equipment, electronic devices, and documentation were seized and are being analyzed by specialists.

The detainees used a commercial company created for this purpose as a front company to conceal the shipment of dual-use material to the Russian Federation, violating current prohibitions. To do so, they used a triangulation scheme, using companies located in other countries to conceal the end-use of the material, with one of those arrested acting as a front man.

Operation Sharma-Konturi

The investigation began in early 2024 when agents learned of the purchase and sale of a commercial company based in Spain dedicated to the international trade of machinery.

After various investigations, investigators discovered how the detainees used the company created for this purpose to facilitate the export of the products through various European customs offices, declaring a third country as the fictitious end-use of the machinery. From there, it would subsequently be re-exported to the Russian Federation, the true end-use of the merchandise, using classic logistical, documentary, and financial triangulation mechanisms. This allowed them to circumvent the controls established for the export of defense and dual-use material.

The detainees also falsified the documentation and labeling of the products in order to conceal the true nature of the material included in the embargo imposed on Russia.

In this operation, agents have confirmed the export of various embargoed machinery worth hundreds of thousands of euros. At the end of this business network was a Russian company sanctioned by international organizations.

The exported dual-use machinery is automated machine tools that can make complex parts. They are mainly used in mass production industries, such as the automotive metalworking industry, the aerospace industry, and even the military industry. These machining centers, which, due to their capabilities, could have applications in the military industry, are considered dual-use equipment under European regulations.

Crime of smuggling prohibited goods

Thanks to the efforts of investigators, a commercial structure created to supply prohibited material to the Russian Federation has been dismantled, thus preventing further shipments of this type of material.

Operation Sharma-Konturi is being led by Central Investigative Court Number Two of the National Court and has been jointly implemented by the Tax Agency's Deputy Directorate of Customs Surveillance, the General Information Commissioner's Office, and the National Investigation Unit (CNI). In addition, it has had the support of the Regional Customs Surveillance Areas of Catalonia and Valencia and the Provincial Intelligence Brigades of Valencia and Alicante.

Last Friday, the detainees were brought before the competent Central Investigative Court, who ordered two of them imprisoned, while the third was released on bail.