The undercover agents hooked the Iranian arms broker slowly, setting up a phony storefront in Philadelphia and sending electronic messages that promised "our future is going to be big." But it took three years before authorities drew the man to a face-to-face meeting in Tbilisi, Georgia, where he was taken into custody and secretly transported to a U.S. prison in early 2008.
On Wednesday, prosecutors and investigators at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement made public long-sealed court papers in which Amir Hossein Ardebili, also known as Alex Dave, pleaded guilty to smuggling, conspiracy, money laundering and violations of the Arms Export Control Act. His goal, authorities say, had been to help prepare Iran for any future conflict with the United States. When investigators posing as businessmen asked Ardebili why he wanted to stockpile airplane parts, the man replied, 'If the United States come to war . . . the government [of Iran] could defend . . . because they think the war is coming,' according to court papers.
Prosecutors say that Ardebili has acknowledged procuring electronic chips used in military aircraft; phase shifters, state-of-the-art devices that help guide missiles to their targets; and a flurry of other sensitive components that fetch as much as $1 million each year on the black market.
Raid your own hi-tech arms bazaar in the James Bond: Tomorrow Never Dies videogame.
By: Brant
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