Russian detained in the Netherlands on suspicion of stealing chip production data

A 43-year-old Russian man who had worked for ASML and Mapper Lithography was detained in the Netherlands.

This was reported by Ukrinform with reference to NU.

“A Russian suspected of espionage at chip companies ASML and Mapper has received an exceptionally long entry ban. The 43-year-old Russian engineer German A. is in custody,” the report says.

It is noted that a few days ago, on Wednesday, the Russian was banned from entering the Netherlands for 20 years as per the decision of Migration and Asylum Minister Marjolein Faber. The ministry has refrained from explaining the reason for the entry ban. It is known that the ban was adopted based on immigration law and is not related to the ongoing inquiry against the Russian national. According to the publication, such a ban is imposed only in the event of a threat to national security.

The Russian worked for lithography equipment manufacturers ASML and Mapper Lithography. According to the Nieuwsuur investigation, the 43-year-old man is suspected of stealing for several years company information, such as microchip manuals, and transferring them to Russia, which violates the sanctions regime imposed by the EU.

The stolen information would have helped Russian chip production, among other things. In exchange, the man received several tens of thousands of euros.

The Russian recently worked for NXP, another major Dutch chipmaker. The engineer was educated at Russian universities and worked at Russian technology companies. He came to the Netherlands in 2015, where he started working for the Delft start-up Mapper Lithography. Mapper went bankrupt three years later and was taken over by ASML.

The Russian is due to appear in court in Rotterdam on Monday.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, Russia operates some Dutch equipment producing chips for its weapons.

Russia has at least one Dutch machine for producing chips that the aggressor country uses in drones, tanks and missiles.