An Iranian-born man was convicted in federal court of conspiring to illegally export sensitive U.S.-made electronic components to Iran, in violation of U.S. sanctions, the Justice Department announced Tuesday. The components were used in Iranian military drones.
Mahdi Mohammad Sadeghi, 43, a dual U.S.-Iranian national of Natick, Massachusetts, was found guilty following a 14-day jury trial of conspiracy and two counts of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations. He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 13.
Prosecutors said Sadeghi, a dual U.S.-Iranian national, worked with Mohammad Abedini, an Iranian businessman who remains a fugitive, to obtain sophisticated U.S.-made electronic components and route them through a Switzerland front company. From there, the electronic components were shipped to San’at Danesh Rahpooyan Aflak Co. (SDRA), an Iranian company that manufactures navigation systems used in military drones and missiles for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. …