The face of sanctioned Scots firm
This is the businesswoman behind a Scottish company sanctioned by America over alleged links to Putin.
Evgeniya Bernova controls Djeco Group LP – which US officials believe is part of an international network designed to supply the Russian war machine.
The 47-year-old is based in Malta where she also runs MaltaRent Ltd, a firm specialising in leasing filmmaking equipment for major movie productions, which has not been named on sanction lists.
On its Facebook Page the firm showcases an array of cameras and hardware along with posts highlighting money-makers who have worked on blockbusters including Star Wars and Snow White And The Hunter.
The US Treasury Department has formally blacklisted Djeco as part of its response to Russian invasion.
It has claimed the firm is part of “a procurement network engaged in proliferation activities at the direction of Russian intelligence services”.
It said: “This network operates across multiple countries to obfuscate the Russian military and intelligence agency end-users that rely on critical western technology.”
Bernova and her husband Nikita Aleksandrovich Sobolev are also facing sanctions over involvement in Malberg Ltd, another Malta-based firm it is claimed worked “to deceptively acquire dual-use equipment on behalf of Russian end-users”.
Companies House filings list Bernova as a person with significant control (PSC) over Djeco Group, which is based in Edinburgh’s Thistle Street.
A LinkedIn profile states that she is the CEO of MaltaRent and a graduate
of the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Bernova was one of two partners named as registering Djeco Group in 2019, the other being a Scottish Limited Partnership, Sauerborn & Sauerborn
Ltd.