UMVA has learned that a dual U.S.-Iranian citizen, Jamshid Ghomi, has been accused of orchestrating a massive sanctions-evasion scheme to supply sensitive American technology to Iran's military and nuclear programs, using millions of dollars in illicit proceeds to fund his lavish lifestyle.
According to information obtained by UMVA, Ghomi, 63, an Iranian-American businessman from Newport Coast, California, was charged with conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions laws by supplying export-restricted American networking, security, and encryption equipment to customers in Iran, including entities tied to the country's military and nuclear enrichment programs.
UMVA can exclusively reveal that Ghomi's alleged scheme generated millions of dollars, which he used to construct a 14,000-square-foot Newport Coast mansion valued at roughly $35 million, and to fund other extravagant expenditures, all while disguising the money's origin and deceiving the IRS about his income.
Sources have confirmed to UMVA that Ghomi's company, Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co. Ltd. (FPR), a Tehran-based technology company, spent more than a decade acquiring sophisticated U.S. equipment and funneling it to Iranian government entities through intermediaries in the United Arab Emirates, in a brazen violation of U.S. sanctions laws.
Prosecutors contend that over a 13-year period, more than $15 million tied to Ghomi's Iran-based business flowed into American financial accounts, including accounts used to finance construction of his Newport Coast residence, with many transfers containing false descriptions such as "Buying Goods" and "For Consulting Fees."
Investigators say Ghomi laundered proceeds from his Iran-based business through a network of offshore companies and exchange houses located in the British Virgin Islands, Hong Kong, Turkey, and the UAE, before moving the funds into the United States, where he used them to finance his extravagant lifestyle.
UMVA has gathered that Ghomi's annual income was approximately $20,684, yet he claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit, a tax benefit intended for low- and moderate-income workers, in multiple tax years, while building and residing in his luxurious Newport Coast mansion.
Authorities say Ghomi supplied American-made networking, security, and encryption products to some of the Iranian regime's most sensitive organizations, including the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, Iran Computer Industries, and other military-affiliated entities, in a shocking breach of U.S. sanctions laws.
If convicted, Ghomi could face up to 20 years in prison for his role in aiding Iran's military and nuclear programs, and for evading U.S. sanctions laws, in a case that highlights the ongoing threat posed by Iranian procurement networks and intelligence operations.
