U.S. Department of Justice Reports Arrests for Illegal Technology Transfer to Iran and China

On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrest of several individuals in two separate cases for planning to transfer sensitive technology and information to hostile foreign adversaries, including the Islamic Republic of Iran. According to the Department of Justice, two Iranian citizens in the Eastern District of New York were charged and arrested for conspiring to export aerospace industry equipment to Iran without the necessary licenses and in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Additionally, in the Central District of California, a man was arrested for stealing trade secrets designed for use by the U.S. government to identify nuclear missile launches and track ballistic and hypersonic missiles. The Deputy Attorney General of the United States stated, 'A year ago, I launched the Disruptive Technology Task Force to respond to adversaries who sought to steal our nation's most powerful technologies and use them against us.' According to Lisa Monaco, since then, in collaboration with our partners at the Department of Commerce, we have arrested over a dozen company executives, engineers, distributors, and others on charges including sanctions violations and other crimes related to illegal transfers. She added that today's charges against three other defendants for attempting to illegally transfer U.S. information, software, and semiconductor technology with military applications for the benefit of the Islamic Republic and China highlight the critical importance of our fight against this national security threat. Paul Abbate, Deputy Director of the FBI, also stated, 'We will continue our aggressive investigative actions to hold accountable those seeking to violate sanctions and illegally transfer sensitive technology to foreign adversaries.' He emphasized that the theft of U.S. trade secrets and technology, especially when it can be used for military purposes, will not be tolerated and added that we will continue to work closely with the Disruptive Technology Task Force to stop such activities. Earlier, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the sentencing of Jalal Hajavi, a 60-year-old Iranian-American businessman residing in Virginia, for illegally exporting heavy equipment from the U.S. to Iran via the United Arab Emirates.