British Arms Brokers Jailed 16 Years Over Warzone Deals

British businessman David Greenhalgh and Greek national Christos Farmakis were each sentenced to 16 years in prison for brokering illegal arms deals worth tens of millions of pounds between 2009 and 2016. The transactions involved former Soviet fighter jets, surface-to-air and anti-tank missiles, AK-47 rifles, tanks and ammunition destined for embargoed countries including South Sudan, Libya, Iran, Iraq and Syria. Prosecutors said the pair arranged the sale of a Ukrainian S-125 Pechora missile system to South Sudan and planned weapons shipments to Libya after the 2011 uprising. Investigators said they forged end-user certificates and used corrupt payments to conceal the weapons’ destinations. Farmakis, who was tried and sentenced in absentia after fleeing the UK, is believed to be in Greece, while Judge Sally-Ann Hales described the scheme as deliberate, sophisticated and financially motivated.