By Anthony Bottan
The suspect, Jilani Humayan, was working for an aviation parts company in 2003 when he applied to the U.S. Department of State's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) for an export license to send military equipment to a company in Malaysia, according to a U.S. Justice Department complaint filed in a Manhattan Federal Court.
The application stated that the Malaysian company would forward the equipment to the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Defense and Aviation.
However, the DDTC sent a return letter to Humayun, stating that his application was rejected because the company was an "unreliable recipient" of items on his munitions list.
In an effort to bypass the DDTC ruling, Humayun formed his own company, Vash International Inc., "to engage in the business of export management for defense and logistic support, including tanks, guided missiles and rocket launchers," the federal complaint stated.
Then, on 11 separate occasions between January 2004 and May 2006, Humayun, via his newly formed company, exported F-5 and F-14 fighter jet parts, as well as Chinook helicopter parts, to the Malaysian company, according to the complaint.
Humayun admitted to federal agents that he undervalued the shipments on his export paperwork so that the Malaysian company receiving the goods could avoid paying Malaysian customs duties. As a result, Humayan was charged with money laundering conspiracy relating to the Malaysian company's wire transfer payments totaling $357,085 to Vash International.
In an interview conducted by federal agents last August, Humayun admitted that Vash International had never been registered with the Department of State, and said he knew that items on his munitions list could not be exported without registration or a license from the DDTC.
However, during a search of Vash International, a brochure for the company was found, stating that it was registered with the DDTC and that products are sold "in accordance with U.S. Department of State, Defense Trade Control and U.S. Commerce Department's existing regulations."
Humayun also admitted that the Malaysian company is his largest customer, but he did not know where the fighter jet parts were shipped once the company received them.
"As is well-documented in public reports, the sole customer of F-14 parts is the Iranian air force," said Michael J. Garcia, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Humayun was arrested on July 19 and charged with 11 violations of the Arms Export Control Act, one count of mail fraud conspiracy and one count of money laundering conspiracy. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for each of the 11 violations and 20 years each for the mail fraud and money laundering charges.
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