Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Suburban Chicago man indicted for sending millions to Iran

I'll be keeping an eye on this story..

From AP:

A 44-year-old Lincolnwood man is accused of transferring almost $4 million to Iran in violation of U.S. trade sanctions, according to federal officials.

Hossein Esfahani was indicted on 193 counts of operating an unlicensed money-transfer business and illegally sending money to Iran. The United States has banned trade with Iran because of its sponsorship of international terrorism.

Authorities say Esfahani operated a money transfer business from his home without a license. He was arrested in March and released with a monitoring bracelet in early June after putting up a $600,000 bond.

Okay, that was from AP. The Chicago Sun-Times has an article in its Metro section that adds a bit more.

The feds have said Esfahani has financial ties to Amir Hosseini, the owner of several West Side auto dealerships, who has been charged with letting gang-bangers buy luxury cars in fraudulent cash transactions. Esfahani and Hosseini own property together in far southwest suburban New Lenox, which is now subject to government forfeiture.

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