SEATTLE — A 44-year-old Iranian national has arrived in Seattle to face charges stemming from a decade-old case involving the illegal shipment of military sonar technology to Iran, federal authorities announced Monday.
Reza Dindar faces multiple charges including conspiracy, smuggling and money laundering after being indicted in 2014. U.S. authorities requested his arrest in Panama last July, and he was transported to Seattle on Thursday, according to the Department of Justice. Officials have not disclosed Dindar’s whereabouts during the years between his indictment and arrest.
Dindar appeared before a U.S. District Court judge Monday afternoon, with his formal arraignment scheduled for May 1. His legal representative, Farhad Alavi, declined to provide statements to The Associated Press on Monday.
Federal prosecutors allege that Dindar operated New Port Sourcing Solutions, a business based in Xi’an, China. The recently unsealed indictment details how Dindar and co-conspirators allegedly deceived a Washington state company in 2011 and 2012 to acquire components for three military sonar systems. Authorities say the group hid the equipment’s final destination and falsely claimed export licenses were unnecessary.
The sonar systems, valued at $97,600, were initially delivered to China before being secretly transported to Iran, violating U.S. trade restrictions first established in 1995 and extended in 2001, according to court documents.
In a separate incident, federal authorities announced the Saturday evening arrest of a 44-year-old Los Angeles woman at LAX airport. She faces allegations of assisting Iran in weapons trafficking to Sudan, which continues to experience civil conflict in its fourth year.
