Inside ICE: Volume 3, Issue 3

Los Angeles Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Ship Sensitive Technology to Iran

LOS ANGELES—A Los Angeles man pleaded guilty on May 8 to charges he attempted to illegally ship sophisticated pressure sensors to Iran in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

Mohammad Fazeli, 27, was arrested March 16 at his Los Angeles apartment by agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). At the hearing, Fazeli pleaded guilty to a one-count information, admitting that he sought to illegally export more than 100 Honeywell sensors. The sensors, which detect the pressure of liquid or gas, could potentially be used to detonate explosive devices.

Fazeli, who remains free on $50,000 bond, is scheduled to be sentenced August 7. He faces a maximum penalty of up to 10 years for violating the IEEPA.

The investigation revealed that Fazeli ordered 103 pressure sensors in September 2004 through a Web site operated by an electronics company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. According to the indictment, Fazeli told an unindicted co-conspirator that he had been contacted by a representative from that company advising him that he needed a license in order to export the devices. Despite that, after receiving the parts, Fazeli allegedly attempted to send them to the United Arab Emirates, with the understanding that the devices would ultimately be shipped to Iran.

Under the IEEPA, Iran has been subject to a trade embargo by the United States since the late 1970s. The Iranian Transactions Regulations expressly prohibit the sale, supply or transshipment of any goods, technology or services to Iran without prior authorization by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. Investigators say Fazeli had not received the required prior approval from the Treasury Department to export the pressure sensors.

ICE’s Counter Proliferation Investigations (CPI) Unit is responsible for investigating the illegal export of U.S. military products and sensitive technology. In fiscal year 2005, ICE’s CPI Unit conducted more than 2,500 investigations into the illegal export of U.S. munitions and sensitive technology, resulting in 101 arrests, 70 indictments and 86 convictions.

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