Dacula CEO Arrested For Part In Russian Conspiracy: Justice Dept.

GEORGIA — The CEO of a Dacula company has been arrested for his part in a scheme to sidestep trade sanctions by illegally selling a U.S.-made power turbine to Russians, according to a statement from the Justice Department.

Dali Bagrou of World Mining and Oil Supply in Dacula was arrested with others in Savannah while trying to complete the illegal transaction, the statement said. Bagrou, identified on his LinkedIn page as World Mining's CEO, currently is in custody pending further legal action.

Bagrou was detained in connection with a case that already has resulted in fines and probation for an Italian company that was involved in the scheme, along with a 28-month prison sentence for its owner after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy.

“This conspiracy represents a tangled web of deceit designed to allow Russian interests to evade United States trade sanctions,” said David Estes, acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, in a statement released on Wednesday.

According to court documents, an “unnamed Russian government-controlled business” contracted with Oleg Nikitin and KS Engineering in St. Petersburg, Russia, to buy an expensive power turbine from a U.S. manufacturer. The unnamed Russian company planned to use the American-made turbine for a Russian Arctic deep-water drilling platform, which is prohibited by the U.S. government without first obtaining permission.

Nikitin admitted that he and another KSE employee conspired with an employee and the owner of the Italian company to buy the turbine on their behalf, according to the government statement. The Italian company company then hired Bagrou and World Mining and Oil to procure the turbine and have it shipped.

Finally, everyone involved submitted false documentation to the U.S. government that showed the Russian-bound turbine would actually be used by an American company in and around Atlanta, according to the statement. Bagrou, Nikitin and the owner of the Italian company were arrested in Savannah while they tried to close the deal.

Read the statement from the U.S. Department of Justice.