Former Putin-appointed Governor Sentenced for UK Sanctions Breach

Dmitrii Ovsiannikov, a former governor of Sevastopol in Crimea, has been sentenced to 40 months in prison for breaching UK sanctions, marking the first such conviction in Britain. Found guilty on six counts of circumventing sanctions, Ovsiannikov was accused of receiving over £75,000 from his wife and a Mercedes-Benz SUV from his brother while on the sanctions list. Despite his prior position and the associated sanctions, he applied for and obtained a British passport in January 2023. His case sheds light on the challenges of enforcing sanctions against politically connected individuals. Both his wife and brother faced charges as well, with the brother receiving a suspended sentence for his role in the financial dealings. UK authorities emphasized this conviction as a warning to those attempting to bypass sanctions regulations.