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Friday, April 10, 2009

N.Y. indictment names Chinese national in plot that sent Iran U.S. missile components

WASHINGTON — An indictment by the district attorney of the New York county of Manhattan has outlined an Iranian plot to acquire nuclear material from the United States.   

The 118-count indictment charges a Chinese national with establishing a series of fronts that acquired dual-use material for export to China and then Iran.

"Our banks have high standards and sophisticated systems to stop these transactions, but this conduct was specifically designed to defeat their systems," Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said.

The Chinese national, Li Fang Wei, and his firm, Limmt Economic and Trade Co., were alleged to have engaged in secret deals with Iran since 2006 after the company came under sanctions, Middle East Newsline reported. Officials said Limmt used aliases to continue sending missile and nuclear material to Iran's Defense Industries Organization.

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The investigation identified such DIO fronts as Amin Industrial Group, Khorasan Metallurgy Industries, Shahid Sayyade Shirazi Industries and Yazd Metallurgy Industries. At one point, DIO requested 400 gyroscopes and 600 accelerometers, required for long-range missiles, from Limmt.

"Materials may be dual-use, but when they are sent to front companies set up by the Iranian military, and the defendants use false end-user certificates and dummy names, there's not much doubt that the use is for weapons," Morgenthau said. "There is no greater threat to the world today than Iran's efforts to procure nuclear weapons and long range ballistics missiles."

The indictment, released on April 7, said the shipments, facilitated by New York banks, took place between 2006 and 2008. The shipments were said to have included 15,000 kilograms of a specialized aluminum alloy used in long-range missile production.

"The Chinese company, known as Limmt, is a major supplier of banned weapons material to the Iranian military," Morgenthau said. "Limmt's Iranian military shipments were paid for primarily in euros."

This marked the second time in 2009 that authorities have reported Iranian efforts to illegally acquire components for missiles and nuclear weapons from the United States. In January, the London-based Lloyd's paid a $350 million fine in a settlement with the Manhattan district attorney amid accusations that the company sought to conceal money transfers to and from Iran for the purchase of missile and nuclear components.

"Like that investigation, the investigation of Li Fang Wei and Limmt presents an example of the use of fraud and deceit to access the world's financial systems, including banks in Manhattan," Morgenthau said.



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