German prosecutors in Hamburg charged four German nationals and one Swiss-French dual citizen with violating Crimea-related sanctions by helping export Siemens gas turbines worth EUR 111 million to power plants in Russian-occupied Crimea.

Prosecutors in Hamburg charged four German nationals and a Swiss-French dual citizen with violating Crimea-related sanctions by helping export Siemens gas turbines to the Russian-occupied peninsula.

The five knew when they helped export the turbines, worth EUR 111 million ($120.11 million), from Hamburg to St. Petersburg that their ultimate destination would be two power plants in Crimea.

One of the suspects was still with Siemens.

All five suspects are contesting the charges.

The prosecutor's office has brought charges against five individuals involved in the illegal supply of Siemens gas turbines to Crimea in 2017, including a current Siemens employee.

Four Germans and one Swiss national facilitated the sale of four gas turbines to a Russian state-owned company, knowing they would end up in Crimea, violating the embargo.

Turbines worth €111 million were shipped from Hamburg to St Petersburg from November 2015 to January 2016.

The turbines were installed at power stations in Sevastopol and Simferopol instead of southern Russia.