In federal court of Brooklyn, Kyrgyz national S. Zh. was sentenced to 39 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to export American-made firearms. The defendant illegally exported firearms and ammunition worth over $1.5 million from the United States to Russia, by way of Kyrgyzstan. The U.S. Department of Justice reports.
The 47-year-old Kyrgyzstani does not have lawful permanent resident status and faces deportation upon sentencing.
According to court filings, the defendant was an arms dealer who operated through a company that he owned located in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Since at least March 2020, the defendant, together with others, conspired to export firearms and ammunition controlled by the DOC from the United States to Russia. The defendant exported approximately $1.58 million worth of U.S.-manufactured firearms and ammunition from the United States to Russia.
In one transaction, the defendant entered into a five‑year, $900,000 contract with a company in the United States to purchase and export firearms to Kyrgyzstan. DOC issued a license for U.S. company to export firearms to Kyrgyzstan, but the license prohibited the export or re-export of the firearms to Russia. Nevertheless, the defendant re-exported firearms to Russia (via Kyrgyzstan), including semi‑automatic hybrid rifle-pistols., without a license.
In another transaction, the defendant re-exported five rifles from a second U.S. company to Russia, via Kyrgyzstan. Here too, the DOC license prohibited the rifles from being re-exported out of Kyrgyzstan. Notably, U.S. company rifles have been used by Russian military snipers, including by Russian battalions known to be active in key battles in Ukraine.
Finally, the defendant conspired to illegally re-export U.S.‑manufactured ammunition from Italy to Kyrgyzstan (and eventually Russia), in violation of U.S. law. The defendant, together with others, placed an order and received 13,000 rounds of ammunition from a third U.S. company worth $23,000 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan by way of Italy. The license for this ammunition required that the ammunition stay in Italy. Nevertheless, the defendant flouted U.S. law and re-exported the U.S. company ammunition from Italy to Kyrgyzstan. The ammunition has reportedly been used in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The citizen of Kyrgyzstan was arrested on January 24, 2025, in Las Vegas, where he was attending the Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show and meeting with American suppliers.
