Woman, 62, convicted in California of exporting thermal riflescopes to Russia

A 62-year-old woman convicted of illegally exporting "defense articles", including thermal imaging riflescopes and night-vision goggles, to Russian co-conspirators has been sentenced to two years in prison, federal officials announced Monday.  

Prosecutors with the United States Attorney’s Central District of California Office say Elana Shifrin, a resident of Mundelein, Illinois, participated in a scheme that exported more than 60 military-grade items to Russia between 2017 and 2020 without obtaining a valid license or approval from the State Department.  

“Shifrin’s co-conspirators purchased the defense articles – including thermal riflescopes, weapons sights, monoculars and night-vision googles – from online sellers in the United States and directed the sellers to mail those items to Shifrin or other co-conspirators in Illinois and California,” a news release from the USAO stated.  

“After receiving the items, Shifrin mailed them to co-conspirators in Russia without obtaining the required licenses.” 

The 62-year-old attempted to conceal the illegal activity by listing fake sender names and addresses on the packages, as well as falsely identifying the products as “non-export-controlled" items, such as clothing.