Shamim Mafi, a 44-year-old woman from Woodland Hills, California, was detained by federal agents on Saturday night at Los Angeles International Airport. She is suspected of brokering weapons sales on behalf of the Iranian government to contacts in Africa, including Sudan, highlighting the ongoing challenges in global arms control.
Bill Essayli, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, stated in a post on X that Mafi has been charged with “brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured” in Iran. This announcement underscores the persistent issues in monitoring illicit arms networks linked to state actors.
Mafi, an Iranian national, has been a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. since 2016. According to a criminal complaint obtained by Fox News, she maintains a U.S. residence but frequently travels to Iran, Turkey, and Oman. The complaint alleges that Mafi lived in Istanbul, Turkey, from 2013 to 2016, and in an interview with federal officials, she claimed her first husband was an officer for Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security, raising questions about her ties to the Iranian leadership.
Mafi and an unnamed co-conspirator allegedly brokered weapons deals through their company Atlas International, based on records from an authorized search. The illegal weapons dealing purportedly occurred in multiple locations, including California, according to the complaint, pointing to the transnational nature of such operations.
In one deal, Mafi allegedly facilitated the sale of Iranian-manufactured drones by the Iranian government to Sudan’s Ministry of Defense, with a contract valued at over €60 million. Mafi herself reportedly earned €6 million after coordinating the Sudanese delegation’s travel to Iran. Sudan has been embroiled in a civil war since 2023, a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of civilians and displaced over 13 million people, exacerbating regional instability.
The Los Angeles Times reported that social media pictures show Mafi posing with weapons at a warehouse in Turkey and enjoying a beach day in California. If convicted, Mafi faces up to 20 years in federal prison, with her first court appearance scheduled for Monday at the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, amid broader scrutiny of arms trafficking networks.
Source: www.theguardian.com