The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department; Special Agent in Charge Antoinette V. Henry of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations; and Special Agent in Charge Nicholas DiGiulio, Office of Investigations, Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services…
According to the indictment, the cigarette tax in Maryland is $2.00 per package of cigarettes ($20 per carton of cigarettes) and the cigarette tax in New York is $4.35 per package of cigarettes ($43.50 per carton of cigarettes). Specifically, the indictment alleges that since December 2011, Elmar Rakhamimov has paid approximately $5.4 million for contraband cigarettes, which were received and stored at his residence in Maryland. The conspirators then transported the cigarettes to the New York area and resold them for a profit. According to the indictment, Elmar Rakhamimov, Artur Zakharyan, and Ilgar Rakhamimov acted as a broker, middleman, and distributor of contraband cigarettes, and Nikolay Zakharyan, Adam Azerman, Shamil Novakhov, and Ruslan Ykiew transported contraband cigarettes to New York and other cities for resale. Elmar Rakhamimov and Yuliya Rakhamimov sometimes paid for the contraband cigarettes with prescription and counterfeit prescription drugs, as well as other controlled substances. Elmar Rakhamimov and other conspirators used Rakhamimov’s residence and his restaurant to conduct the illegal transactions of contraband cigarettes and drugs. The indictment alleges that Salim Yusufov, who owned Healthway Pharmacy, received more than $81,000 in kickbacks for the contraband cigarette transactions.
Further, the indictment alleges that Elmar Rakhamimov and Zarakh Yelizarov conducted financial transactions involving the proceeds of the contraband cigarette sales, in order to conceal the nature, source, ownership, and control of the proceeds of the illegal activity. Specifically, the indictment alleges that Rakhamimov and Yelizarov conducted wire transfers of cash from bank accounts they controlled in Latvia, Cyprus, and Estonia.
In a separate indictment, Salim Yusufov, who owned and operated Healthway Pharmacy in Pikesville, is charged with illegally providing unapproved prescription drugs from Germany and Eastern Europe and sold them to customers. According to the indictment, Corvalol, also referred to Corvalolum and Valocordin, is not approved by the FDA for distribution in the United States, although it is sold in Eastern European countries, where it is used to treat elevated blood pressure and as a tranquilizer and sedative. Valocordin and Corvalol contain large amounts of phenobarbital, a prescription drug regulated by the FDA. The indictment alleges that from July 23, 2010 through July 14, 2011, Yusufov imported and distributed Valocordin, dispensing the drug without a prescription.
FBI press release link: click here