Subject of our investigation under scrutiny by Lithuanian Customs
The Lithuanian Customs Service commented on the operations of the company Skani siunta, which facilitated the supply of vehicles to Belarus and Russia in circumvention of European sanctions.
“The company in question is known to customs officials”, was the agency’s reply to our colleagues at the Siena investigation centre.
Skani siunta has been the subject of our Truck Dealers investigation. The Lithuanian company has helped to circumvent the European sanctions imposed on Belarus and Russia. It was involved in truck deliveries.
In March 2022, the EU banned the export of road tractors to Russia and Belarus. To circumvent sanctions, deliveries are routed through Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, as these countries are not subject to restrictive measures. We uncovered a network of companies that use this shady scheme.
For example, on 11 August 2023, the Lithuanian company Skani siunta delivered a DAF XG 480 FT road tractor with VIN code XLRTEF5300G415600 to the Kyrgyz company Luchshiye Resheniya. A week later, a truck manufactured in the Netherlands and bearing the same unique number was discovered in a warehouse in Odintsovo, Russia. The Belarusian company Avtoby Leasing sold it to the Russian company Avtoby. We found a total of 25 such sanctions-busting shipments organised last year. The equipment cost more than $2.4 million.
Skani siunta’s exports to Belarus included tractors and luxury cars, which were subsequently resold to Russia. Companies that have come to our attention in the past have been involved in shady schemes to evade sanctions.
For example, on 3 June 2023, the Lithuanian company Skani siunta delivered to the Belarusian company Autoby Leasing a Ferrari SF90 Stradale passenger car with VIN code ZFF95NMB000291117. About two weeks later, Autoby Leasing sold an Italian car with precisely the same unique number to the Russian company Autoby. A total of 11 passenger car deliveries were found to have been made under the same scheme in the past year. The value of the goods is over $1.8 million. Our investigation “Superflux Couriers” detailed how Belarusians drive European luxury cars to Russia.
However, the EU closed that loophole at the end of June this year. It imposed new sanctions on official Minsk. Europe banned the export to Belarus of petrol cars with an engine capacity of more than 1.9 litres and a ground clearance of 165 mm or more. Carriers may look for other workarounds to deliver expensive equipment to Russia, driving the cost. As with trucks, front companies from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and other countries can be used to formalise transactions.