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Man Arrested At Pensacola Airport Pleads Guilty To Attempting To Smuggle Equipment To Iran
September 2, 2020
Colin Fisher, a citizen of the United Kingdom, pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) and attempted smuggling in relation to exporting power generating equipment to Iran.
Fisher was arrested by federal agents when he arrived in Pensacola from the United Arab Emirates earlier this month to consummate the illegal transaction and get equipment for a buyer in Iran.
Fisher, 45, admitted in United States District Court in Pensacola that from October 1, 2017, to August 7, 2020, he worked to violate the Iranian embargo by attempting to export a Solar Mars 90 S turbine core engine and parts from the United States for delivery to an end user in Iran. This included participating in fraudulent invoicing and using coded language with conspirators to communicate about the illegal transactions.
Despite these efforts, law enforcement authorities discovered the plan and were able to seize the turbine before its transatlantic journey to the end user in Iran, a conspirator in Iran who is linked to an Iranian energy company. The intercepted turbine, which was valued at half a million dollars, could be used to provide needed energy to the oil fields of Iran.
“Exporting technology to Iran is prohibited for a very good reason, yet this defendant chose to put his own self-interest above global and national security,” U.S. Attorney Keefe said. “This case should send a clear signal that the United States cannot and will not look the other way when persons endanger the safety of our nation and its people. We will enforce these laws, which are vital to our national security, against those both within the United States and abroad.”
James Meharg, CEO and president of Turbine Resources International, LLC, in Pensacola, was previously convicted of conspiring with Fisher to export a large turbine and parts from the United States to an Iranian recipient in violation of the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations. Meharg is currently serving a 40-month sentence in federal prison.
“The commitment of the Bureau of Industry and Security to protect our nation’s security against terrorist procurement networks in State Sponsors of Terrorism countries such as Iran remains unwavering,” said P. Lee Smith, Performing the Non-exclusive Functions and Duties of the Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement in the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security. “These continued efforts to bring all conspirators to justice are demonstrated in this most recent guilty plea.”
Comments
10 Responses to “Man Arrested At Pensacola Airport Pleads Guilty To Attempting To Smuggle Equipment To Iran”
He is a subject, not a citizen. They have no written constitution and all laws must have the monarch’s signature. He is a subject of Queen Elizabeth. While they have produced a somewhat similar culture and set of laws, at their core, they are a very different country. In 1948, the UK passed a law calling their subjects “citizens,” but nothing ever changed about how they are actually ruled. The rights of their people are derived from the State, rather than the state deriving its rights from the People like here in the US.
Woo. Big time criminal. I have suspected for years that some undercover ring from England is behind a lot of the terrorist activities going on in Europe and the Middle East.
The United States is the greatest hope for peace everywhere. Trump has a fantastic record of achiement in the middle east. Moved embassy to Jerusalem peacefully, has obtained a treaty between the arabs and israelis THIS LAST MONTH… FANTASTIC MAN OF PEACE… (not counting shrinking our military presence in the middle east while continuing to protect people I would abandon… there is no record of anyone every trusting the arabs without getting bit for it.)
I am far from pro Iran as one put it, but trading and somewhat normalizing business in exchange for some peace of mind in the region. The other comm-enter could very well be correct, this news happened a while back. All I was trying to convey is that Europe is somehow still managing to work with Iran but we the U.S. are no longer interested in improving relations as it currently stands. I mean the E.U. as it stands is Iran’s largest trading partner. Instead of Iran buying new Airbuses they could be buying new Boeing’s
@Tom – not accurate. A clause in the agreement that if any one of the major players in the agreement objected to lessoning the restrictions then the terms of the agreement would not be valid. The USA was well within the agreement to act as it did. I suggest you reevaluate your news source in search of an independent source that isn’t pro-Iranian.
Believe it or not unlike the rest of the E.U and United Kingdom it was us the United States that backed out of our (Deal) with Iran, further setting the precedent that our contracts and deals are not to be trusted. This was world wide news at the time, nothing anyone can not look up themselves.
Limey traitor send him to Iran
Sir, can you please look at the camera
JTV
He’s a citizen of the United Kingdom, not the USA. He’s not a traitor.
I miss the days of executing traitors.