Wanted by three states
Lithuania suspects a Belarusian businessman, Raman Semianenia, of a possible violation of sanctions. The Criminal Service of the Lithuanian Customs has informed the investigative publication Siena that an active pre-trial investigation is being carried out into Semianenia. The Lithuanian officials intend to interrogate the Belarusian businessman. A request was sent to Germany, as Semianenia had indicated Berlin as his place of residence in his official documents.
Raman Semianenia, 24, is the owner of the Lithuanian company Milca Baltija, which transported Belarusian products to the EU, circumventing European restrictions. In 2022, Milca Baltija transported a shipment of urea to the European Union, falsely labeling it as Uzbek-produced. The urea originated from the sanctioned Grodno Azot plant, and the operation involved forged documents. This violated sanctions legislation, as previously reported by investigative journalists. Furthermore, Milca Baltija purchased sanctioned products from the Belarus Steel Works that was not in compliance with EU regulations, intending to resell them on the EU market. This also constitutes a violation of European legislation.
Buro investigated how Semianenia and his European business fared after the scandals.
The legal entity Milca Baltija was registered in March 2021. However, the company’s main business profile was not fertilisers but trading in metal products. Following the publication of the exposé, the company was liquidated by court order, and since October this year, it has officially ceased to exist, and its website has been disabled. We could also not contact any of the Lithuanian numbers for Milca Baltija.
The same fate has befallen Semianenia’s German asset, Stecore International GmbH, which deals in foundry tubes and metal profiles. The company’s website is no longer available online, and the search engine indicates that the company is “permanently closed,” but the legal entity in Berlin has not yet been liquidated.
Raman Semianenia also owns another company in Poland, Milca Poland. The legal entity is still in operation. Attempts to contact the young businessman’s father, Ruslan Semianenia, were unsuccessful, and his Polish number was also disconnected.
Mediazona reported that Semianenia was also on the radar of Russian law enforcement. His details were found among more than 700 Belarusians in the Russian wanted database. Apparently, he was there at the Belarusian side’s request.
Buro could not establish Raman Semianenia’s current whereabouts or the reason for the Belarusian special services’ interest in him.