Irish firm charged with sales to Iran

An Irish trading company has been charged with sending helicopter engines and other aircraft parts to Iran, according to an indictment unveiled in a US federal court today.

The 25-count indictment charges Mac Aviation of Drumcliffe in Co. Sligo, and three of its officers of buying the components from US companies and sending them to Iran through Malaysia and other countries.

The US Justice Department says the recipients included an Iranian military firm, Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial, that the United States has designated as a “weapons of mass destruction proliferator” for involvement in Iran’s alleged nuclear and ballistic missile programme.

Justice Department officials said they are seeking the arrest and deportation of the Irishmen: 72-year-old company owner Tom McGuinn; his 40-year-old son Sean McGuinn, the sales director; and commercial manager Sean Byrne.

The indictment, or charge sheet, says that in the three years before charges were filed under seal in July 2008, Mac Aviation bought US aircraft engines and parts while concealing that they were ultimately heading to customers in Iran.

The United States imposed sanctions against Iran soon after its 1979 Islamic revolution, which overthrew the US-backed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and brought hard-line clerics to power. The sanctions banned the export of military technologies, among other things.

The indictment charges each of the Mac Aviation officials with two counts of conspiracy, 19 counts of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and Iranian Transactions Regulations, four counts of false statements and forfeiture allegations.

If convicted, the defendants face maximum sentences of 10-20 years in prison for each of the IEEPA counts, 5-20 years in prison for each of the conspiracy counts, and five years in prison for each of the false statement counts.

The indictment says the purchases included $4.27m (€3.16m) to Rolls-Royce in Indianapolis, Indiana, for 17 turbo-shaft helicopter engines, originally designed by the US Army but since installed in numerous civil and military helicopters.

The US Justice Department claims Mac Aviation was really buying the engines for Tehran businessman Hossein Ali Khoshnevisrad, who was arrested on March 14 when he flew into San Francisco International Airport as part of the case.

Other Mac Aviation buys included 50 aircraft vanes worth $141,750 (€105,000) from United Technologies, Pratt & Whitney in East Hartford, Connecticut, and 32 aircraft bolts worth $2,261 (€1,675) from Uniflight LLC of Grand Prairie, Texas, the indictment says.