The U.S. Justice Department has successfully secured the forfeiture of two high-end condominiums in Miami, as announced in a recent press release, due to violations of U.S. sanctions imposed on Russian nationals. The two properties, intricately tied to Russian national Viktor Perevalov, are valued at roughly $1.8 million. The court-ordered default judgment and final order of forfeiture were entered yesterday, with the Justice Department declaring a win in the battle against attempts to sidestep sanctions.
Engaged in a seemingly endless game of cat and mouse, offenders like Perevalov and his associates sought to conceal their assets using nominees and shell companies, only to find that the U.S. has the capacity to track and dismantle such arrangements. "Today's successful forfeiture once again demonstrates that the attempt to hide assets behind nominees and shell companies is a risky short-term game with real long-term costs," explained Michael Khoo, Co-Director of the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, in a statement shared by the Justice Department. The properties in question were found to be maintained, transferred, and leased in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), specifically from January 2018 through March 2023.
According to details revealed in the complaint, Perevalov and Valeri Abramov, both founders of a Russia-based construction company that constructed the Tavrida Highway in Crimea, faced sanctions in the wake of the Russian invasion of the region. These sanctions included being designated to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) and Blocked Persons List by the U.S Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Despite these measures, a Miami real estate agent, managing the properties on the sanctioned individuals' behalf, transferred the condos to a limited liability company designed to mask ownership on or about June 14, 2018. Even after the transfer, the properties continued to generate leasing income.
The case, shedding light on sophisticated evasion tactics, was investigated by the FBI Miami Field Office with help from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department. The diligent effort of the task force, dedicated to enforcing sanctions and economic countermeasures imposed in response to Russian military aggression, reflects the Justice Department's resolve. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Paster, Marx P. Calderón, and Eli Rubin, along with Trial Attorneys Sinan Kalayoglu and Lindsay Gorman of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, spearheaded the civil action prosecution while coordinating through the Task Force KleptoCapture. The task force, announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, pledges to leverage the Department's resources to combat sanction evasion efforts.
