Major Export Enforcement Cases - Directorate of Defense Trade ...

Chavarin’s vehicle at the Douglas, Ariz., port of entry. Perez-Rodriguez and Chavez face
additional charges as illegal aliens in possession of weapons.
Assault Weapon Parts and Gun Sights to Philippines – On Feb. 7, 2011, Mike Cabatingan
pleaded guilty in the District of Arizona to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and
the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. On Feb. 24, 2010, a federal grand jury in the
Central District of California returned an indictment against Cabatingan, Romulo Reclusado and
another man for conspiring to illegally export defense articles and other controlled items from the
United States to the Philippines. The defendants allegedly conspired to export to the Philippines
molds used to make components for AR-15 assault rifles as well as holographic rifle sights.
Aguayo and Cabatingan were arrested on Feb. 25, 2010. Reclusado remains at large. Reclusado
was previously convicted in 1997 of conspiracy to transfer machine guns and illegally
transferring machine guns for which he received a 27-month prison sentence. On Jan. 12, 2011,
the court granted a motion to dismiss the case against the third defendant. The investigation was
conducted by ICE and DCIS.
Tactical SUVs Armed with M 134 Mini-guns to Turkmenistan – On Feb 4, 2011, Ruslan
Gilchenko was sentenced in the District of Arizona to 18 months in prison and three years
supervised release for conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act. A Feb. 24, 2010
indictment charged Gilchenko and Victor Dobrogaiev with conspiracy to violate the Arms Export
Control Act, money laundering and fraud charges. According to the charges, Gilchenko and
Dobrogaiev attempted to obtain three sport utility vehicles outfitted with M134 Mini-guns, which
are fully automatic defense suppression weapons that fire at a rate of 3,000 rounds per minute, for
illegal export to Turkmenistan. As part of the conspiracy, the defendants allegedly agreed to pay
$1.2 million to purchase three armed vehicles and forwarded $340,000 to sellers in the U.S. as a
down payment. In connection with the transaction, Gilchenko, who represents a company in
Slovenia called MG CZ Group, allegedly sought to defraud the government of Turkmenistan of
by causing the price of the transaction to be inflated. Gilchenko pleaded guilty to the conspiracy
count on Sept. 29, 2010. The investigation was conducted by ICE.
Specialized Metals For Iranian Missile Program – On Feb. 1, 2011, an indictment returned on
July 21, 2010, was unsealed in the District of Columbia charging Milad Jafari, an Iranian citizen
and resident, with illegally exporting and attempting to export specialized metals from the United
States through companies in Turkey to several entities in Iran -- including entities that have been
sanctioned for their involvement in Iran’s ballistic missile activities. The Treasury Department
also designated Jafari, several of his family members, associates, and corporate entities in Iran
and Turkey, under Executive Order 13382, which targets for sanctions the proliferators of
weapons of mass destruction and their supporters – thereby isolating them from the U.S. financial
and commercial systems. According to the Treasury designation, Jafari and his associates operate
a procurement network that provides direct support to Iran’s missile program by securing metal
products, including steel and aluminum alloys, for subordinates of Iran’s Aerospace Industries
Organization (AIO). The indictment alleges that Jafari and others operated Macpar and STEP,
businesses with locations in Istanbul and Tehran. From Feb. 2004 through Aug. 2007, Jafari and
his conspirators solicited orders from customers in Iran and purchased goods from U.S.
companies on behalf of these Iranian customers. Jafari and others allegedly wired money to the
U.S. companies as payment, concealed from the U.S. companies the end-use of the goods, and
caused the goods to be shipped to Turkey and later to Iran. For instance, the indictment alleges
that in July 2006, Sanam Industrial Group – an entity in Iran that is controlled by Iran’s AIO and
has since been sanctioned by the U.S. and United Nations for involvement in nuclear and ballistic
missile activities -- issued to Jafari’s company, STEP, a request for quote for 660 pounds of a
specialized steel welding wire with aerospace applications in rocket/missile casings. Jafari
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