HOUSTON – The United States obtained a warrant to seize a Boeing 737-7EM aircraft owned by PJSC LUKOIL, a Russian multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Moscow, Russia. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas authorized the seizure, finding probable cause that the Boeing aircraft was subject to seizure based on violations of federal law.
Earlier this year, the Department of Commerce issued sanctions against Russia in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The sanctions impose export controls and license requirements to protect U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. The Russia sanctions expanded prohibitions on the export, reexport or in-country transfer of, among other things, U.S.-manufactured aircraft to or within Russia without a valid license or license exception.
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According to court documents, LUKOIL owns the Boeing aircraft – bearing tail number VP-CLR and manufacturer serial number 34865 – which flew into and out of Russia in violation of the Department of Commerce’s Russia sanctions.
“The FBI will remain focused and faithful to our responsibility to protect our U.S. national security and foreign policy interests,” said Special Agent in Charge, James Smith, of the FBI – Houston Field Office. “We’ll continue to go after individuals who insist on helping Russia advance its hostile and illegal activities, and we’ll continue to seize their valuable possessions, wherever they may be. We thank Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Department of Commerce for their partnership in this case.”
The Boeing last flew into the United States in March 2019 when the plane flew from overseas to Houston with LUKOIL officials, including a Russian oligarch – then LUKOIL president and CEO Vagit Alekperov – on board the aircraft. The Boeing is believed to be in Russia and worth approximately $45 million. Since September 2014, LUKOIL has been subject to sectoral sanctions imposed by the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
The seizure action is being coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2 and run out of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all the department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
The FBI’s Houston Field Office, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security and HSI in Houston are investigating the seizure matter. The investigation into additional aircraft is ongoing.