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.
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