Forwarder Indicted for Russian Exports

A Washington State freight forwarder was indicted Tuesday in a Brooklyn court for her alleged involvement in a scheme to circumvent U.S. export laws and sanctions on Russia.

A 12-count indictment charges Natalya Ivanovna Mazulina, 41   the Western regional manager of Delex Air Cargo, a freight forwarding company based in Jamaica, New York, was arrested December 10 in Seattle and will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date.

“As alleged, Mazulina used her position as a manager of a freight forwarding company to facilitate unlawful exports to Russia through JFK airport,” stated Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; “Evading U.S export regulations presents a danger to our national security, and we will continue to use all of our law enforcement and national security tools make sure these enablers, both individuals and corporations, cannot operate in our district.”

“The defendant exploited her knowledge of the export business to falsify documents and circumvent U.S. sanctions by illegally shipping oil and gas products to Russian customers,” stated Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen.  “American companies like the freight forwarder where Mazulina worked play a critical role in the global supply chain and movement of goods. The National Security Division will not tolerate individuals who seek to abuse their positions in these companies for financial gain at the expense of national security.”

As alleged in the indictment, from at least December 2022 through December 2024, Mazulina conspired with Russian freight forwarding companies and others to unlawfully ship controlled items, including industrial oil and gas equipment from the United States to Russia, through intermediary countries. 

At one point, in June 2023, Mazulina told colleagues that her clients were paying through bank accounts in third party countries because “[m]ost of [her] clients [were] currently sanctioned with USA.” Mazulina attempted to conceal the unlawful scheme by submitting and causing the submission of false export documents to the U.S. government, documents which should have revealed that the exported goods were destined for Russia.   

Mazulina is charged with conspiracy to export controlled goods to Russia without a license, conspiracy to defraud the U.S., conspiracy to commit money laundering, exporting controlled goods to Russia without a license, filing false export documents with the U.S. government, and smuggling goods contrary to U.S. law.  If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count of conspiring to export or exporting controlled goods to Russia without a license; up to 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit money laundering; up to 10 years in prison for each count of smuggling; and up to five years in prison for each count of conspiracy and filing false export documents with the U.S. government.

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section.  Assistant United States Attorneys Artie McConnell and Matthew Skurnik are in charge of the prosecution, along with Trial Attorneys Christopher M. Rigali and Adam Barry of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, and with the assistance of Litigation Analyst Emma Tavangari. The Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section assisted with this investigation.

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 24-CR-493 (EK) [indictment]