Pictured: Fridman ran the business Swedish Body Armour.

Guernsey's Royal Court rejected his explanations saying that the island "must play its part” in upholding international obligations and trade restrictions that are intended to prevent violence and brutality. Crown Advocate Fiona Russell said it was the first case of its kind to go before the Guernsey courts. 

A consignment of goods was manufactured and shipped to Guernsey from a Chinese factory between November and December 2022. It contained 162 items in total, with a value of around €6,000. Fridman arranged with various Guernsey freight companies for the storage and forwarding of some of the 20 boxes onto Macau and the remainder to Sark. 

He described the goods as “float boards” and instructed the freight handler to change an invoice which described them as bulletproof shields, later instructing the firm to organise the export of 14 boxes to Macau. Customs officers later inspected these and found bulletproof shields, ballistic shields and body plates.  

The Border Agency determined they were military items and, after liaising with UK authorities, discovered an active arms embargo for China, Hong Kong, and Macau which Fridman did not have the required license to circumvent.  

Pictured: Gal Fridman (59) had pleaded guilty to to making false import declarations for ballistic shields and body armour panels.

Fridman was arrested at Guernsey Airport after disembarking a flight from London Gatwick on June 14 2023 and a search warrant executed on his Sark address found the remaining six boxes which contained 90 pieces of body armour and one shield that he was customising.  

He voluntarily provided passcodes for two mobile phones and a laptop where correspondence was found with the manufacturer relating to the import and export. He had requested they stop using military-linked descriptions as he feared government authorities were attempting to disrupt his business activities. 

Fridman also explained that “floatation devices” would provoke less suspicion to customs than other descriptions.  

In interview, he said it would be “impossible” to carry out his business with licenses or customs approval, that he was unaware that Macau has been under embargo since 2022, and that he expected his repeat client there to supply the goods to security agencies or police.   

When it was raised with him that the address in Macau had links with a gun shop he said he was unaware of this, and was also unable to recall instructing the freight firm to change information on the invoice. 

He continues to maintain the items shipped on this occasion were to be used in a prototype way for boating purposes, and otherwise his products were used for protective purposes. 

The prosecution did not recommend his deportation, partly due to his UK settled status ending in 2026, but also because he had indicated his desire to leave the Bailiwick.  

Fridman was unauthorised to leave Sark for much of his bail after the case was committed to the Royal Court, going without identification, his personal devices, and paying a £7,500 security.  

Advocate Sara Mallett, defending, noted this case could not be heard in the criminal courts in the UK but the island did not have the tools to consider it any other way. 

She reported Fridman’s exceptional previous good character of nearly six decades and insisted his successful and respected business, which included supplying the BBC with protective equipment for warzone reporting, was only concerned with defensive rather than offensive equipment.  

He relocated to Sark in 2021 following a relocation drive led by notable resident Swen Lorenz and disclosed at that time the nature of his business and the types of items he sold to the GBA, she added. 

She said he did not relocate to evade suspicion.  

“He did not come to the island to continue clandestine trades under the radar,” Advocate Mallett said, however she said it was accepted that he should've been responsible for ensuring his imports and exports complied with local law and international obligations.

Pictured: Fridman’s business sold security and protective equipment.

Fridman also claimed the items had been mislabelled in the box and suggested they wouldn’t be capable of withstanding gunfire. 

He attempted to resolve the situation out of court with the GBA via a local law firm at considerable personal cost. Advocate Mallett said this added to “immeasurable losses” as restrictive bail conditions meant he lost time with his terminally ill mother, there were other difficulties with his children, and the breakdown of his relationship.

She urged the court to consider the impact of further depravations of his liberty. 

It took jurats around two hours to determine his sentence. Judge Catherine Fooks, sentencing, said the court viewed the changing of the invoice as suspicious and an attempt to conceal the items which he should have known required a license for export. 

While the equipment was defensive, such items can allow the offensive to occur, she added, and there was concern that proper due diligence hadn’t been carried out on the Macau client to ensure the items didn’t fall into the wrong hands or violate the trade embargo. 

“There is strong public interest in the prosecution of such matters,” she said.

The court also rejected his use of Sark as a jurisdiction, suspecting Fridman was attempting to disguise the true nature of his business.  

Due to the seriousness of the offences the court was unable to find an alternative to immediate custody: “There has to be a significant element of deterrence,” Judge Fooks said. 

He was sentenced to two months in prison for false declarations and a further 10 months for the export attempt. The forfeiture of the goods and his personal digital devices was also ordered. 

At a hearing later in the afternoon the Bailiff granted bail to Fridman pending his appeal – which is being argued based on a manifestly excessive sentence and that the sentence is wrong in principle. 

He must reside at his Sark address, surrender his identification, and a £7,500 security already held by the court was extended.