ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Two Chechen men living in Northern Virginia are accused of smuggling firearms to the Russian republic.
Tengiz Sydykov, 28, and Eldar Rezvanov, 27, were arrested Tuesday on charges of international trafficking in firearms, smuggling and other offenses, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The Alexandria, Virginia, residents purchased more than 100 disassembled firearms and tried to ship them to Chechnya without a license, using false shipping inventories, and disguising the parts as kitchen utensils and car seat covers, a criminal complaint said.
Postal employees told investigators the pair made parcel shipments nearly daily.
The men appeared in federal court Tuesday and were ordered held pending a detention hearing Thursday. Each faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.