The American admitted guilt in the import and sale of plutonium from Russia
According to prosecutors, the 44-year-old bought plutonium-239 from a St. Petersburg seller and made at least 67 deals to sell it to customers in the United States, Canada, Japan and Switzerland
A resident of Massachusetts pleaded guilty to charges of importing and selling plutonium from Russia, writes The New York Times (NYT), citing federal prosecutors.
Jacob D. Miller, 44, received plutonium and other toxic hazardous substances before sending them to customers in the U.S. and abroad. Last year, he was accused of importing nuclear material without legal authority, mailing it and possessing child pornography.
Plutonium-239 (Pu-239) is a radioactive isotope of plutonium, which refers to fissile nuclear materials. It is capable of maintaining a fission chain reaction under the influence of neutrons and is used in nuclear power, including in some types of nuclear fuel. It is also a major component of nuclear weapons.
Miller was also charged with possession of ammunition and explosives. According to the NYT, Miller agreed to plead guilty in September. At the same time, for each count, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 21, 2027.
The newspaper notes that the search at Miller's house was carried out in April last year. Police found ammunition, six firearms, explosives, dangerous chemicals, plutonium and child pornography. The man has been in custody since April 9, 2025.
In 2017, Miller founded a business called Collect the Periodic Table and sold "samples of every collectible item and even some rare and hard-to-find ones," including what he called a sample from a "Cold War-era smoke detector source," worth $500. Among the “goods” was plutonium-239, a toxic radioactive material that the man was able to import from a seller from St. Petersburg.
Between December 2020 and March 2025, he sold plutonium to at least 67 customers in the United States, Canada, Japan and Switzerland. He also sold thallium to 71 customers.
In 2024, U.S. prosecutors accused alleged Japanese mafia member Takeshi Ebisawa of trying to sell uranium and plutonium to Iran. "He is charged with conspiring to sell nuclear weapons and narcotics materials from Burma, as well as acquiring military weapons on behalf of an armed rebel group," Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen said in a statement.
