Valeria Baigascina, originally from Kazakhstan and now living in Belarus, was found to have set up a Kyrgyzstan-based firm allegedly involved in transferring British-made camera lenses that could be used in military applications.

The 25-year-old, whose social media depicts a glamorous lifestyle spanning destinations like Dubai and Malaysia, was listed as the director of Rama Group LLC, a company registered in the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek.

A BBC investigation found that customs records revealed that the firm facilitated shipments of precision lenses made by U.K. manufacturer Beck Optronic Solutions to sanctioned Russian entities, including the Ural Optical & Mechanical Plant, known for producing bomb-aiming technology.

According to the document, Rama Group made two shipments of the optical components, listed as “rotating part of camera,” to a company called Sol Group based in Smolensk, 320km south-west of Moscow, and under western sanctions.

Four additional shipments, handled by another Kyrgyz intermediary, Shisan LLC, also reportedly carried Beck Optronics’ equipment to Russia.

The shipments, valued at $2.1 million, raise serious questions about the enforcement of Western sanctions against Russia, imposed following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

“When they sell this technology to a client who is potentially a Russian end-user, they fully should understand that this is to kill people,” said Olena Tregub of Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdog NAKO.

“Without those technologies, those weapons would not fly.”

Baigascina has denied the allegations, telling BBC News that “nothing like that was supplied” while she owned Rama Group, which she claimed to have sold in May 2023.

Her successor, a lingerie entrepreneur in Kazakhstan, also dismissed the claims, saying that the company operates “exclusively within the framework of Kyrgyzstan’s laws.”

Beck Optronic Solutions, based in Hertfordshire, denied any involvement or knowledge of the shipments.

“Beck has not shipped anything contrary to U.K. export controls or sanctions... [and] was not aware that any shipments might ultimately be destined for these destinations,” the company said.

Experts say Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet state with close ties to Moscow, has become a hub for sanctions evasion.

UK exports to Kyrgyzstan have surged by over 300% since 2022, despite efforts to close the loopholes by EU and U.K. officials.