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WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government has seized a Boeing 747 cargo plane that officials say was previously sold by a sanctioned Iranian airline to a state-owned Venezuelan firm in violation of American export control laws. The Justice Department said Monday that the American-built plane had arrived in Florida and would be disposed of. The plane was detained in June 2022 by Argentine law enforcement, and U.S. officials moved several weeks later to take possession of it. The Justice Department has identified the registered captain of the plane as an ex-commander for the Revolutionary Guard. Mahan Air has denied any ties to the aircraft, and Venezuela has demanded that Argentine authorities release the plane.

Persons: Mahan, Matthew Olsen, ”, Nicolas Maduro, Regina Garcia Cano Organizations: WASHINGTON, Boeing, Justice Department, Air, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Quds Force, Officials, Revolutionary Guard, Justice, Argentine, The, Mahan Air, Associated Press Locations: U.S, Iranian, Venezuelan, Florida, United States, Argentine, Argentina, Emtrasur, Moscow, Caracas, Tehran, Venezuela

☆ US Charges Chinese Nationals With Smuggling US-Made Electronics to Iran
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities have charged four Chinese nationals with crimes related to the smuggling of U.S.-made electronic components, including some with possible military use, to Iran, the Justice Department said on Wednesday. The Chinese nationals are accused of moving U.S. export-controlled items through China and Hong Kong to sanctioned entities affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its defense ministry, the department said in a statement. The alleged scheme resulted in the export of a "vast amount" of dual-use U.S.-origin commodities with military capabilities from the United States to Iran, the Justice Department said. "Such efforts to unlawfully obtain U.S. technology directly threaten our national security, and we will use every tool at our disposal to sever the illicit supply chains that fuel the Iranian regime's malign activity," Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department's national security division said in the statement. The U.S. has issued arrest warrants for the accused, who all remain fugitives, according to the statement.

Persons: Matthew Olsen, Ismail Shakil, Rami Ayyub, Bill Berkrot Organizations: WASHINGTON, Justice, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Justice Department, Justice Department's Locations: U.S, Iran, China, Hong Kong, United States

WASHINGTON (AP) — An Iranian man who federal prosecutors say operates a criminal network that targets dissidents and activists abroad has been charged alongside a pair of Canadians with plotting to kill two people, including a defector from Iran, who had fled to the United States. In this case, prosecutors say, Naji Sharifi Zindashti conspired with two Canadian men between December 2020 and March 2021 to kill two Maryland residents. The intended victims of the murder-for-hire plot were not identified in an indictment, but prosecutors described them as having fled to the United States after one of them had defected from Iran. The plot was ultimately disrupted, the Justice Department said. Prosecutors say Ryan and Pearson are currently imprisoned in Canada on unrelated charges.

Persons: Sharifi Zindashti, Matthew Olsen, John Bolton, Trump, Biden, He's, Damion Patrick John Ryan, Adam Richard Pearson, Ryan, Pearson, “ Organizations: WASHINGTON, Justice Department, Department, Justice, Department's, U.S, Associated Press, Iran's Ministry of Intelligence, Security, Treasury Department, Monday Locations: Iran, United States, China, Maryland, Iranian American, Jordan, American, U.S, Canada, Minnesota

The tool, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, will expire at the end of December unless the White House and Congress can cut a deal and resolve an unusually vexing debate that has yielded unlikely alliances at the intersection of privacy and national security. Without the program, administration officials warn, the government won't be able to collect crucial intelligence overseas. National security officials have said that 59% of articles in the president’s daily brief contain Section 702 information. The White House has already dismissed as unworkable the one known legislative proposal that’s been advanced. Despite the clear challenges in reaching a compromise, the last-minute scramble between the White House and Congress has come to be expected each time the government’s surveillance powers are set to be renewed.

Persons: Biden, Matthew Olsen, Ayman al, Donald Trump, Trump, “, ”, Jamil Jaffer, George Mason University’s, That’s, Jim Jordan, Democratic Sen, Ron Wyden, Wyden, Andy Biggs, —, We’re, ” Wyden, “ We’ve, Farnoush Amiri Organizations: WASHINGTON, Foreign Intelligence, House, Department's, Hamas, Trump, White House, Congress, National Security Institute, George, White, Capitol, FBI, Republican Rep, Democratic, Republican, Associated Press Locations: U.S, Russia

☆ Three charged with sending Russia over $7 million in electronics to aid war on Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Three people were arrested in New York City on Tuesday on charges of illegally smuggling millions of dollars' worth of electronics to Russia in order to aid the country's invasion of Ukraine. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn accused Nikolay Goltsev, Salimdzhon Nasriddinov and Kristina Puzyreva of evading sanctions in order to send Russia equipment used in their precision-guided missile systems. The defendants allegedly dispatched hundreds of shipments of restricted items, worth nearly $7.2 million, to Russia over the course of a year. The complaint alleges that the defendants used two corporate entities to source and purchase dual-use electronics from U.S. manufacturers and distributors, and then secretly export them to Russia. Some of the same types of components were found in Russian weapons platforms and signals intelligence equipment that were seized in Ukraine, prosecutors alleged.

Persons: Nikolay Goltsev, Salimdzhon Nasriddinov, Kristina Puzyreva, Nick Stevens, Matthew Olsen Organizations: Attorney, Eastern, of, Prosecutors, United Arab, Justice Department's National Security Division Locations: Brooklyn, New York City, Russia, Ukraine, U.S, of New York, Tajikistan, Goltsev, Montreal, Manhattan, Russian, Turkey, Hong Kong, India, China, United Arab Emirates, Vitebsk

☆ Former U.S. Army sergeant charged with offering classified information to China
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — A former U.S. Army sergeant was arrested on Friday for allegedly attempting to provide classified national security information to China, the Department of Justice said. Schmidt allegedly initiated efforts to provide Chinese intelligence with U.S. defense information after separating from the military in January 2020, the department said. He was part of the 109th Military Intelligence Battalion, where he had access to information classified "Secret" and "Top Secret," the DOJ said. He also is accused of reaching out to both the Chinese Consulate in Turkey and the Chinese security services via email to offer the information. "Individuals entrusted with national defense information have a continuing duty to protect that information beyond their government service and certainly beyond our borders," said Matthew Olsen, assistant Attorney General for National Security, in a statement.

Persons: WASHINGTON —, Joseph Daniel Schmidt, Schmidt, Schmidt's, Matthew Olsen, Tessa Gorman, Gorman Organizations: Defense, Pentagon, Washington D.C, U.S . Army, Department of Justice, DOJ, Joint, Lewis, McChord, 109th Military Intelligence Battalion, Consulate, National Security, Attorney, Western, of, of Defense Locations: Washington, United States, China, San Francisco, Hong Kong, Seattle, U.S, Turkey, of Washington

[1/3] Charles McGonigal, a former FBI official who has been charged with working for sanctioned Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, arrives at Federal Court in New York City, U.S., August 15, 2023. At the time, McGonigal pleaded not guilty to four criminal counts including sanctions violations and money laundering. McGonigal told the court he was "deeply remorseful" for his actions. U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rearden is scheduled to sentence McGonigal on Dec. 14. U.S. prosecutors charged McGonigal as they ramped up efforts to enforce sanctions on Russian officials and police their suspected enablers following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Persons: Charles McGonigal, Oleg Deripaska, Brendan McDermid, McGonigal, Vladimir Potanin, Seth DuCharme, Jennifer Rearden, Matthew Olsen, Washington, Jody Godoy, Grant McCool Organizations: FBI, Court, REUTERS, Prosecutors, Deripaska, U.S . Department of Justice's National Security Division, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Russian, New York City, U.S, New York, Manhattan, Russia, Cyprus, New Jersey, Ukraine, Nornickel

☆ Justice Department files criminal charges in cases of American tech stolen for Russia, China and Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Hannah Rabinowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Justice Department announced on Tuesday five criminal cases against people accused of stealing or illegally diverting American technology and materials for the Russian, Chinese and Iranian governments. The man, Xiangjiang Qiao, is at large in China, according to the Justice Department. “These charges demonstrate the Justice Department’s commitment to preventing sensitive technology from falling into the hands of foreign adversaries, including Russia, China, and Iran,” said Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department’s national security division. In New York, a Greek national is charged with allegedly acquiring more than 10 different types of sensitive technologies on behalf of the Russian government. The man, Dr. Nikolaos “Nikos” Bogonikolos, was arrested in Paris last week and the US will move for his extradition, the Justice Department said.

☆ U.S. and China wage war beneath the waves – over internet cables
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +28 min

Three of China’s state-owned carriers – China Telecommunications Corporation (China Telecom), China Mobile Limited and China United Network Communications Group Co Ltd (China Unicom) – had committed funding as members of the consortium, which also included U.S.-based Microsoft Corp and French telecom firm Orange SA, according to six people involved in the deal. China Telecom, China Mobile, China Unicom and Orange did not respond to requests for comment. China Telecom, China Mobile and China Unicom were resolutely behind HMN Tech, which had come in with a bid of around $500 million. China Telecom and China Mobile threatened to walk off the project, taking tens of millions of dollars of investment with them. Among them is China Telecom, which had previously won authorization to provide services in the United States.

☆ New York man sentenced to 2 years for conspiring to steal GE secrets for China
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A New York man was sentenced on Tuesday to two years in prison for conspiring to steal General Electric 's trade secrets to benefit China, the U.S. Justice Department said. Zheng was employed at GE Power in Schenectady, New York, as an engineer specializing in turbine sealing technology. He worked at GE from 2008 until the summer of 2018, the Justice Department said. The United States had accused the former GE engineer and another Chinese businessman named Zhaoxi Zhang in 2019 of stealing secrets and spying on GE to aid China. A U.S. federal court in Cincinnati sentenced a Chinese national in November to 20 years in prison after he was convicted of plotting to steal trade secrets from several U.S. aviation and aerospace companies.

☆ After being falsely accused of spying for China, Sherry Chen wins significant settlement
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Kimmy Yam | Kimmy Yam Is A Reporter For Nbc Asian America. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

An Asian American scientist who was wrongfully accused of spying for China is speaking out after reaching a lucrative settlement with the U.S. government last week. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, which backed Chen, the hydrologist will receive $550,000 from the Commerce Department and an annuity over 10 years valued at $1.25 million. Neither the Commerce Department nor the DOJ commented further on Chen’s ordeal. However, the Commerce Department appealed the decision and placed her on administrative leave. As part of the settlement, Chen is retiring from the NWS, her lawyers said.

☆ U.S. to announce criminal cases against a 'nation-state' -Justice Department
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - The top law enforcement officials in the United States will on Monday announce U.S. action targeting "malign influence schemes and alleged criminal activity" by a "nation-state actor," the Department of Justice said. The national security cases will be discussed at a news conference at 1:30 p.m. (1730 GMT), the department said in a statement, without giving further details. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe Justice Department also did not cite whether the schemes involved or were aimed at the Nov. 8 midterm U.S. elections. In July, the Justice Department filed charges over a multi-year political operation aimed a spreading Russian propaganda or influencing U.S. elections. In November 2021, the United States imposed Iran-related sanctions over attempts to influence the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

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