Two men have been arrested for illegally obtaining microelectronics intended for the Iranian military.
Two men charged for illegally obtaining American goods (Photo: ABC7)
Two Men Arrested for Illegally Procuring American Technology for Iranian Military
According to ABC, two men namely Hossein Hatefi Ardakani and Gary Lam, were arrested and charged with illegally obtaining American Technology for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ drone program.
The two men that were arrested were based in China and Hong Kong, they were charged in D.C. federal court with procuring microelectronics for the IRCG’s program from 2014 to 2015.
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Two Men Procured American Technology in Web of Foreign Companies
According to SCMP, the two men used a web of foreign companies to accomplish purchasing technologies and evasion efforts. An example of this would be the two men using a French company to purchase a U.S. company several analog-to-digital converters, satellite subsystems, multicarriers, multimodal cellular receivers, and more.
The technologies that were purchased by the two men were sent to Hong Kong which then reexported to Iran.
The two men are charged with conspiracy to export U.S. goods to Iran and to defraud the United States, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. The two men are also facing charges of unlawfully exporting and attempting to export goods to Iran and money laundering.
The two men will carry the charges for 20 years in prison.
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