On Tuesday morning, around 50 investigators searched seven properties in several federal states on suspicion of illegal exports to Russia. "There is a suspicion of the illegal export of goods to Russia," said Kai Thomas Breas from the Stade public prosecutor's office. The forces were active in Bremen, Bremerhaven, in the Lower Saxony district of Osterholz and in Constance in Baden-Württemberg.

NDR, WDR and the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" initially reported on the use of the customs investigators. "We are investigating on suspicion of violating the Foreign Trade Act," said Breas, the chief public prosecutor in Stade. The law enforcement agency initially declined to provide any further details.