Dual Israeli/Russian Citizen Sentenced to 18-Month Prison Term on Money Laundering Charge in International Scheme

            WASHINGTON - Stanislav Nazarov, 46, a dual citizen of Israel and Russia, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after earlier pleading guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering stemming from his role in an international fraud scheme.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Andrew W. Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and John L. Phillips, Assistant Inspector General for Investigations for the U.S. Department of Treasury.

            Nazarov was among 19 people charged last year in federal indictments outlining various international fraud and money laundering conspiracies. He was indicted in January 2017 and arrested in March 2017 in Israel. Nazarov later waived extradition to the United States and pled guilty on Dec. 12, 2017, in the U.S District Court for the District of Columbia. He has remained in custody since his initial arrest and was sentenced on March 5, 2018.

            In addition to the prison term, the Honorable Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered Nazarov to pay a forfeiture money judgment of $50,000. Following completion of his prison term, Nazarov will be subject to deportation proceedings.

             “Stanislav Nazarov engaged in a multi-layered form of money laundering to hide the proceeds of international fraud schemes,” said U.S. Attorney Liu. “His arrest and extradition from Israel was a result of international cooperation amongst law enforcement targeting global crime networks.”

            “This sentencing illustrates a significant disruption to transnational organized crime,” said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. “The FBI works diligently with our partners in the United States and abroad to ensure criminals like Nazarov are brought to justice.”

             “Treasury OIG continues to prioritize investigating transnational criminal organizations that exploit financial institutions, money service and other businesses impacting Treasury’s role in the oversight of the nation’s financial infrastructure, said Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Phillips. “Treasury OIG appreciates the support of our law enforcement partners which led to this successful prosecution.”

            According to a statement of offense submitted at the plea hearing, in or around 2013, Nazarov agreed to become partners with an unnamed money launderer who worked with individuals and groups engaged in fraudulent schemes in Israel and elsewhere. In return for his assistance, Nazarov was to receive a share of proceeds that his partner made from various fraudulent schemes. In one such scheme, a cyber-phishing scam was carried out in 2015 that tricked a director of a company into wiring $1.4 million to a bank account in the United States. 

            In December 2016, Nazarov obtained what he believed to be a portion of that $1.4 million by receiving $50,000 at his location in Israel.  According to the statement of offense, Nazarov received that money by orchestrating a sophisticated money laundering scheme whereby the $50,000 was first transferred to Russia, and then to Nazarov in Israel.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the U.S. Department of Treasury, Office of the Inspector General. Assistance has been provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Washington, D.C., and the Israeli National Police. The FBI Legal Attaché in Tel Aviv, Israel, also provided assistance.

            The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Marando and David Kent of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, with assistance from Paralegal Specialists Brittany Phillips, Christopher Toms, C. Rosalind Pressley, and Elizabeth Swienc.