A federal court in Brooklyn sentenced an American-Iranian citizen to 30 months in prison for smuggling prohibited technology into Iran using front firms based in the UAE.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) released a statement explaining the verdict, PCMag reported. DOJ said that Kambiz Attar Kashani, 44, had plotted to unlawfully transfer US commodities and technology to end clients in Iran, including the Iranian Central Bank.
Illegal Export
The DOJ claims that between 2019 and 2021, Kashani and his associates used two shell corporations in the UAE to acquire electronic goods and technology from US companies on behalf of clients, including the Central Bank of Iran.
As far as the DOJ is concerned, the said bank organization has provided material assistance to designated terrorist groups in the Middle East.
Six power supplies, two licenses to a proprietary computer software program, a number of fixed attenuators, two subscriptions to operating software, and a number of storage systems were among the technologies and items supplied illegally.
Assistant FBI Director of Counterintelligence Division Alan E. Kohler Jr. made a comment on the sentencing: "This is a sobering reminder that illegally exporting material is not an abstract economic concern - it is a crime with a direct impact on the safety of the American people."
The Verdict
Kashani's plan to export US technology to Iran undermined US foreign policy and national security objectives and required a severe term of jail to discourage others, said US Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York.
According to the DOJ, "Kashani and his co-conspirators intentionally concealed from the US companies that they intended to send the items to Iran, falsely claiming that the UAE companies would be the ultimate end users. By providing the Central Bank of Iran and other end users in Iran with sophisticated, top-tier US electronic equipment and software, Kashani and his co-conspirators enabled the Iranian banking system to operate more efficiently, effectively and securely."
Tech Services to Iran
In 1984, the US government officially recognized Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism.
However, after months of protests following the death of Mahsa Amini the US government has eased restrictions on US technology companies offering their services to Iranians. Amini was a young woman who had been detained at a police station for not wearing the hijab in conformity with federal standards.
