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Feds Seize $35 Million California Mansion After Tech CEO Arrested For Smuggling Military Gear To Iran -
Jake Grissom
A dual U.S.-Iranian citizen and technology company CEO was arrested today in Santa Ana, California, on federal charges alleging he smuggled sophisticated American computer networking and encryption equipment to Iran’s military and nuclear programs.
Jamshid Ghomi, 63, a resident of Newport Coast, faces a federal criminal complaint charging him with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). He is scheduled to make his initial court appearance this afternoon in the United States District Court in Santa Ana.
Federal prosecutors allege that Ghomi used his Tehran-based computer networking company, Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co. Ltd. (FPR), to acquire controlled U.S. technology for Iranian clients over more than a decade without obtaining required licenses from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Under the IEEPA and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations, exporting goods or services to Iran from the United States is strictly prohibited due to national security threats, including terrorism sponsorship and nuclear proliferation.
Jamshid Ghomi
“Ghomi is accused of aiding our declared enemies by selling U.S.-origin computer networking parts to Iran and earning millions of dollars in violation of U.S. sanction laws,” First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli said. “Our nation’s laws prohibiting doing business with one of the world’s largest state sponsors of terrorism must be enforced and obeyed. We will hold him accountable by seeking an appropriate prison sentence and by seizing his assets, including his $35 million Newport Beach mansion.”
Jamshid Ghomi
According to the supporting affidavit, Ghomi used personal eBay and PayPal accounts between 2011 and 2023 to purchase computer equipment, routing the shipments through intermediaries in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to disguise the final destination. In 2023, he allegedly negotiated directly with suppliers in Minnesota and Nebraska, using a UAE front company to send the items to FPR in Iran. Between 2014 and 2018 alone, Ghomi allegedly arranged the smuggling of more than 250 metric tons of networking equipment.
Investigators state that Ghomi knew his actions were illegal, intentionally directing co-conspirators to omit invoices, remove his name from shipping documents, and refer to Iran as “Motherland” in internal communications. He also received explicit warnings on software licenses regarding export restrictions.
FPR generated more than $10 million in annual sales, serving hundreds of Iranian companies and government agencies. Court documents state that between 2017 and 2023, FPR supplied networking equipment to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), the agency overseeing the country’s uranium-enrichment and nuclear programs. AEOI required FPR to register as an approved vendor in 2021 and 2022. Additionally, from 2014 to 2022, FPR allegedly supplied encryption and security equipment to Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics under contracts signed directly by Ghomi.
“Today’s arrest reflects our commitment to disrupt the illegal flow of American technology to foreign nations, especially our adversaries,” said Darren Lian, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation’s Los Angeles Field Office. “As alleged, Mr. Ghomi spent years exploiting United States financial systems and procurement channels to move controlled equipment to Iran while hiding his activities behind front companies and falsified documentation. We will continue to work with our partners to safeguard national security by utilizing our financial investigative expertise.”
Prosecutors allege Ghomi laundered the proceeds by depositing Iranian sales revenue into a sanctioned Iranian bank before sweeping the funds through shell companies in Hong Kong, Turkey, the UAE, and the British Virgin Islands. The incoming U.S. wire transfers allegedly used fake labels like “Buying Goods” or “For Consulting Fees.”
From 2011 to 2024, Ghomi transferred more than $15 million into the United States, which he reported to the IRS as a foreign inheritance. During this period, his federal tax returns reported virtually no income, peaking at $20,684 in a single year, and he claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit for seven years. However, he simultaneously reported over $1.7 million in home mortgage interest and $1.25 million in local real estate taxes.
Authorities allege Ghomi used $7 million of these foreign wire transfers to fund the construction of his Newport Coast mansion. He purchased the vacant lot in 2010 for $4,490,000 and spent over $10.4 million on construction between 2010 and 2013.
The case is being investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security. Assistant United States Attorney David C. Lachman of the Major Frauds Section is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Ghomi faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in federal prison. A criminal complaint contains only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
READ: 20 Prior Convictions, 1 Fake ID: Inside A Multimillion-Dollar Scam That Just Unraveled in Maryland
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A dual U.S.-Iranian citizen and technology company CEO was arrested today in Santa Ana, California, on federal charges alleging he smuggled sophisticated
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