Russian convicted in Florida for smuggling near $1M in aircraft parts to Russia

A federal jury in South Florida has convicted a Russian national living in the state for orchestrating an illegal scheme to smuggle nearly $1 million worth of U.S. aircraft parts to Russia and its sanctioned state-owned airline, Aeroflot. Alexander Mamonov, 62, was found guilty on all 12 felony counts against him, including conspiracy to violate export control laws, smuggling, and money laundering. The verdict, delivered this week in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, follows a trial that detailed how Mamonov and a co-conspirator bypassed stringent trade sanctions imposed after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Those sanctions specifically prohibited Aeroflot from receiving American-origin goods, including aircraft and aviation components. Prosecutors presented evidence that Mamonov, a former Aeroflot employee who relocated to South Florida, partnered with another Russian national, Ignat Vakorin, to execute the scheme. The two men were charged together in April 2025. According to trial testimony, they deceived U.S.