BERLIN - A German man caught trying to smuggle over 90 million roubles' ($982,500.00) worth of gold into Russia faces up to five years in prison, the local customs authority in Pskov said.

Customs officials and FSB officers stopped the 58-year-old who was allegedly carrying 13 kilograms of gold bars in his motor home, the authority said in a Telegram post on Monday.

Pskov is a city located some 20 kilometres from Russia's border with Estonia.

The German foreign office had no immediate comment on the case when contacted by Reuters.

A criminal case has been opened, the Pskov customs authority said. Alongside a custodial sentence, the man could also face a fine of up to 1 million roubles.

The detention of Western citizens in Russia, including some German nationals recently freed as part of a multi-country prisoner swap, has become an increasingly fraught topic against the backdrop of Russia's war in Ukraine.

  - Reuters