Washington | Ten Iranians have been charged with circumventing US sanctions imposed on their country by concealing more than $ 300 million in transactions over almost 20 years, the US Department of Justice said on Friday.
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They are suspected of having bought on behalf of Iran two oil tankers worth $ 25 million each and of having used “more than 70 shell companies” based in California, Canada, Hong Kong or in the United Arab Emirates.
The 10 people involved seem to be “outside the United States,” said the Department of Justice.
They face up to 20 years in prison if they are ever convicted by an American court.
“The defendants have worked to conceal transactions worth hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of a state sponsor of terrorism. Make no mistake, the Department of Justice will continue to deploy all the tools necessary to curb the Iranian regime’s ability to use the American financial system for its malicious enterprises, ”said the Deputy Minister of Justice responsible for matters of justice. national security, John Demers.
Iran is subject to economic sanctions from the United States, reinstated in 2018 after being lifted as part of the 2015 nuclear deal, from which former President Donald Trump had withdrawn .