CEO of Iran tech firm arrested over alleged sanctions breach supplying US equipment to nuclear military entity

A dual US-Iranian national and chief executive of a Tehran-based technology company has been arrested in the United States on federal charges alleging a decade-long scheme to illegally supply U.S.-origin networking and encryption equipment to Iran’s nuclear and military establishments in violation of sanctions law.

Jamshid Ghomi, 63, of Newport Coast, California, was taken into custody on a federal criminal complaint accusing him of conspiring to breach the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) by acquiring and exporting restricted American technology to Iran without authorisation from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Prosecutors allege Ghomi, founder and CEO of Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co. Ltd. (FPR), used his company to procure sensitive U.S. networking hardware and reroute it through intermediaries in the United Arab Emirates before delivering it to Iranian clients, including government and military-linked organisations.
Authorities claim that between 2011 and 2015 he used eBay and PayPal accounts to complete more than 400 purchases of restricted equipment, while later arranging direct acquisitions from suppliers in Minnesota and Nebraska through front companies. Investigators further allege that from 2014 to 2018 he coordinated the smuggling of over 250 metric tons of equipment into Iran via freight forwarders in Dubai, concealing end-user details and disguising shipping documentation.

According to court filings, FPR supplied equipment to the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, which oversees the country’s nuclear programme, as well as the Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics. Prosecutors allege the company also provided encryption and security systems to defence-linked entities despite explicit sanctions restrictions.

Officials say Ghomi concealed the scheme through layered financial transfers, false invoicing and front companies, moving more than $15 million into the United States over a period spanning 2011 to 2024. Authorities also allege he misreported income to tax authorities while funding a multimillion-dollar luxury residence in Newport Coast through illicit proceeds.

Law enforcement officials described the alleged conduct as a deliberate effort to bypass export controls and funnel advanced U.S. technology to sanctioned Iranian institutions. The Department of Justice said the case forms part of broader enforcement efforts targeting illegal technology transfers to adversarial states.

Ghomi faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison if convicted. Officials emphasised that the complaint is an allegation and that he is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.