Georgia arrests man for selling radioactive uranium-238 to foreign national for $700,000

Footage showed agents testing two small containers in the trunk of the vehicle with a handheld radiation detector. One of them appeared to contain a light-colored powder.

Georgia has detained a man who planned to sell uranium-238 to a foreign national for $700,000, the national security service said on Wednesday.

The Georgian citizen is accused of illegally handling nuclear material and faces up to 10 years in prison, it said in a statement, sharing a video of armed security personnel pulling a man out of a white sedan and handcuffing him on the ground.

It was not immediately possible to contact the man or a legal representative for comment.

The footage also showed agents testing two small containers in the trunk of the vehicle with a handheld radiation detector. One of them appeared to contain a light-colored powder.

Uranium-238 is the most common uranium isotope and, while radioactive, is not ordinarily usable on its own to make a nuclear bomb.

Securing nuclear materials a major concern after 1991 collapse of Soviet Union

The security of nuclear materials was one of the biggest concerns after the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, of which Georgia was part. There have been several serious incidents involving the illicit trade in nuclear materials in Georgia over recent decades.

In February, Georgia detained two people who attempted to purchase $3 million worth of uranium and a cache of a radioactive isotope found in nuclear weapons testing programs.