Federal prosecutors filed civil forfeiture actions on Friday seeking to recover more than $15.3 million allegedly tied to an illegal Iranian oil smuggling operation, according to the Justice Department.
The legal actions target funds that prosecutors claim Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani used to “operate multiple distribution companies” that sold and transported Iranian oil and other goods in defiance of American economic sanctions.
According to the Justice Department, Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani is the son of Ali Shamkhani, who served as a senior adviser to Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The department noted that both Ali Shamkhani and Ali Khamenei died in joint U.S. and Israeli military operations against Iran conducted last week.
