Spanish flight instructor claims role as straw man for Russian tech smuggling

A flight instructor from Girona, Spain, named Pere, claims he was used as a straw man for a Hong Kong-based company, Pixel Devices, which was allegedly involved in bypassing international sanctions to supply military technology to Russia.

According to reports, Pixel Devices was sanctioned by the European Union Council in July for its links to the Russian military-industrial complex. The U.S. Department of the Treasury also sanctioned the firm, alleging it shipped at least $210 million worth of electronic products with military applications to the Russian company Compliga since April 2022.

Pere, who directed the company for over six years, maintains he was unaware of the true nature of the operations. He stated he believed the company was supplying consumer electronics to global retailers like MediaMarkt. He described the situation as a “strange trap” and expressed the feeling that he was being used as a target to shield the actual operators.