WASHINGTON— A U.S. judge has sentenced a former Russian nuclear official to four years in prison for his role in arranging millions of dollars in "corrupt" payments linked to the Russian state nuclear company Rosatom.
The U.S. Justice Department said the sentence was handed down to Vadim Mikerin, 56, after he pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Mikerin was an executive with a Maryland-based subsidiary of Tenex, a Rosatom-owned firm that supplies and exports uranium and enrichment services to nuclear power companies worldwide.
The U.S. Justice Department said Mikerin helped facilitate the payment of bribes made to win "improper business advantages" for U.S. firms that worked with Tenex.
Judge Theodore Chuang also ordered Mikerin to forfeit more than $2 million.
Two other men also have pleaded guilty in the case and are awaiting sentencing.