TD Bank moves to seize home of Russian-Canadian jailed for smuggling tech to Kremlin

TD Bank is moving to prehend the Quebec location of a Russian-Canadian convicted successful New York for conspiring to secretly vessel much than $10 cardinal successful restricted electronics to the Kremlin for usage successful weapons systems successful its Ukraine war, Global News has learned.

Toronto-based TD has filed a 60-day announcement of its volition to foreclose connected the Ste. Anne-de-Bellevue residence of Nikolay Goltsev, 38, who sits down bars successful New York and awaits sentencing.

City of Montreal spot appraisal records accidental the location helium shared with his woman Kristina Puzyreva until their arrests successful 2023 has a marketplace worth of $848,800. So far, it does not look to beryllium for sale.

The foreclosure comes arsenic TD negotiates with the U.S. Department of Justice and different American fiscal regulators to wage up to U.S. $4 cardinal successful penalties for aggregate money-laundering lapses and announced plans past week for its CEO to discontinue and beryllium replaced successful 2025.

U.S. officials person investigated and accused TD’s American affiliate of having lax anti-money-laundering controls and detection systems wrong astatine slightest 4 branches successful New York, New Jersey and Florida that allowed criminals similar Goltsev and his woman to usage TD to facilitate crimes.

In June, Bloomberg News revealed 1 lawsuit featured a TD USA banker successful Florida taking $200 bribes to look the different mode connected a Columbian cause trafficking ring’s wealth laundering, including by providing falsified records, opening dozens of accounts to assistance criminals travel their currency crossed borders.

In May, The Wall Street Journal reported a Justice Department probe into TD Bank’s interior controls was focusing connected however Chinese transgression groups and cause traffickers utilized TD to launder wealth from its U.S. fentanyl sales. That probe was launched aft FBI agents allegedly uncovered a New York and New Jersey cognition that laundered hundreds of millions of dollars from illicit narcotics done respective TD branches and different banks, with traffickers greasing bankers with astatine slightest $57,000 successful acquisition cards, The Journal reported.

TD Bank firm spokesperson Elizabeth Goldenshtein declined to sermon specifics of Goltsev’s lawsuit successful New York oregon the bank’s foreclosure enactment connected his Quebec home.

“While we would not remark connected immoderate lawsuit details owed to our confidentiality policy, I tin corroborate that this lawsuit is not related to our ongoing AML matters successful the U.S,” Goldenshtein stated.

On July 11, Goltsev entered a blameworthy plea aft reaching a woody with prosecutors with the U.S. lawyer for the Eastern District of New York. Investigators seized TD Bank records southbound of the border, tribunal records show.

Prosecutors sealed those, truthful it is hard to cognize however overmuch wealth sloshed done the TD account.

Goltsev’s plea statement shows helium agreed to forfeit and wage U.S. $4 cardinal and surrender assets worthy different U.S. $1.68 cardinal seized by FBI and Homeland Security investigators.

He besides agreed not to entreaty immoderate condemnation helium whitethorn get that is 46 months successful jailhouse oregon less, a transcript of the plea woody shows. Goltsev besides agreed to beryllium deported from the United States, perchance to beryllium returned to Canada oregon Russia, a transcript of the plea statement shows.

On July 17, TD Bank filed its announcement of intent to foreclose connected the businessman’s Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Que., home. A lawyer representing TD said successful the filing the jailed Russian-Canadian businessman owes the slope $232,715 connected a location equity enactment of recognition information of a $450,000 mortgage.

Goltsev signed the owe with a TD Montreal subdivision to bargain the location successful 2015.

Goltsev has failed to marque payments since TD cancelled the HELOC information of his indebtedness and demanded afloat repayment connected June 28, lawyer Olivier Therrien said successful the 60-day notice.

A bailiff served the 60-day foreclosure announcement connected Goltsev’s mother-in-law, Russian nationalist Snezhana Puzyreva, who besides was surviving successful the residence with different antheral who was her spouse erstwhile Global News visited the spot this summertime , documents show.

Goltsev’s wife, Kristina Puzyreva, was besides charged successful the exertion smuggling scheme. She pleaded blameworthy to a wealth laundering conspiracy charge. She was sentenced to 2 years successful jailhouse this summer.

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TD has fixed Goltsev and Puzyreva’s household 60 days to vacate the location oregon look court-ordered eviction and judicial repossession.

City of Montreal spot appraisal records accidental the location has a existent marketplace worth of $848,800.  So far, it does not look to beryllium for sale.

Using aliases similar “Nick Stevens” oregon “Gio Ross,” Goltsev and Puzyreva and different members of their conspiracy admitted to buying physics components from large U.S. manufacturers and distributors utilizing beforehand companies, SH Brothers and SN Electronics.

They were buying restricted exertion components that could beryllium utilized for some civilian and subject purposes.

The radical coordinated much than 300 shipments of restricted electronics that aboriginal went to Russian defence contractors and were utilized connected the Russian battlefield to termination Ukrainians, documents show.

FBI and U.S. Homeland Security investigators gathered substance messages and banking records which showed Goltsev and Puzyreva knew the exertion was being utilized exclusively for subject hardware and lied astir it.

Goltsev and his co-conspirator, Salimdzhon Nasriddinov, utilized beforehand companies successful Turkey, China and Hong Kong, India, and United Arab Emirates. Packages were past rerouted to Russia, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors collected grounds showing immoderate physics components and integrated circuits shipped by Goltsev were aboriginal recovered successful seized Russian service Ka-52 onslaught helicopters, Orlan-10 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and T-72B3 conflict tanks and Izdeliye 305E guided missiles.

More physics parts were recovered rocket defence and physics warfare quality systems.

The U.S. prosecutors said Puzyreva operated the galore slope accounts and conducted fiscal transactions to further the group’s scheme.

She told her hubby Goltsev astatine 1 constituent they were raking successful truthful overmuch currency they would beryllium rich.

A U.S. justice volition condemnation Goltsev connected December 10, 2024. He faces up to 20 years successful prison.