Iranian-American Engineer Sentenced to Eight Years in U.S. Prison

A court in the United States has sentenced Mozafar Khazaei, an Iranian-American citizen, to eight years and one month in prison for attempting to transfer sensitive military technology and information from the U.S. to Iran. Reuters reported on Friday, October 23, that Mr. Khazaei accepted his charges in court and apologized. The 61-year-old Khazaei was an engineer at Pratt & Whitney, a contractor for the U.S. military, who was arrested in January 2014 while attempting to leave the United States with parts from the engines of F-22 and F-35, the most advanced fighter jets in the U.S. He also exchanged emails with 'Iranian parties' containing information about U.S. military programs. Khazaei claimed that these emails were part of a job application. However, the prosecutor stated that he sent U.S. military documents to Tehran as part of a teaching application for universities in Iran. The court sentenced Khazaei to eight years and one month in prison, while the prosecutor had requested a ten-year sentence. Under U.S. law, the actions of this Iranian-American engineer are considered a violation of the country's military export control laws.