Rogue Planet

NY jury convicts wealthy arms dealer of conspiracy

By LARRY NEUMEISTER

NEW YORK (AP) — A Manhattan jury has convicted a wealthy arms dealer of conspiring to sell weapons to informants who supposedly were supplying terrorists willing to kill Americans.

U.S. prosecutors said Syrian-born Monzer al-Kassar (MAHN'-zur al-kuh-SAR') and a co-defendant conspired over a four-month period last year to try to sell millions of dollars worth of heavy weaponry to Colombian militants.

The defense said the men were actually sleuthing on behalf of Spanish intelligence operators.

U.S. authorities said al-Kassar was willing to sell surface-to-air missile systems, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, thousands of machine guns and millions of rounds of ammunition to Colombian rebels.

The charges included conspiracy to provide aid and equipment to a terrorist organization and conspiracy to kill United States nationals.

[ap.com]

'Merchant of Death' in Thai court

AMBIKA AHUJA ASSOCIATED PRESS

BANGKOK, THAILAND (AP) - An alleged arms smuggler's extradition hearing to the United States began Monday after a string of delays in the high-profile case because of complications with his defense team in Thailand.

Viktor Bout, dubbed "The Merchant of Death," has been indicted in the U.S. on four terrorism charges. He was arrested in Thailand on March 6.

Though Bout denies any involvement in illicit activities, he is regarded as one of the world's most-wanted arms traffickers and was purportedly the model for the character portrayed by Nicolas Cage in the 2005 movie "Lord of War."

Chained at the ankles, Bout made no comment as he was led into Bangkok's Criminal Court. Monday's hearing was briefly interrupted at the start when defense attorney Preecha Prasertsak petitioned the court to dismiss the case, arguing that the Russian had been illegally detained. After a half-hour adjournment, judges said the complaint would be considered at a later date.

Continue reading "'Merchant of Death' in Thai court" »

Wednesday's Miami Herald article brings to light two recommendations:

1. If you're in the business of circumventing arms trade regulations, don't move to South Florida. There is a lot of not-so-smart competition and/or very smart federal agents in the same place.
2. If you're going to sell 'Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs' to a country like Zimbabwe, don't name your business 'Russian Aircraft Services LLC'   

South Florida arms-exporting cases

• Airplane parts: In June, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami charged a Broward County man with conspiring to export military aircraft parts to Iran. Traian Bujduveanu, 53, faces up to 20 years in prison and $1 million in fines if convicted of violating the U.S. Arms Export Control Act and the U.S.-Iran trade embargo. He was born in Romania but is a naturalized U.S. citizen who for the past 30 years has lived in Plantation, where he cares for his blind mother, according to his attorney.  Bujduveanu has pleaded not guilty, along with a California man charged with the same counts. Both are scheduled for trial in March.

• Made-in-China munitions: In June, a federal indictment charged a 22-year-old Miami Beach businessman with conspiring to sell Chinese-made ammunitions to Afghanistan security forces.  Efraim Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., allegedly sent 35 shipments worth $10 million overseas and tried to pass them off as Albanian-made. But the munitions were from China, which violated Diveroli's contract with the Pentagon, prosecutors said.  He faces more than 10 years in prison if convicted of intentionally misleading the U.S. government.

• Night-vision goggles: In May, a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale sentenced a woman to 29 months in prison after she pleaded guilty in a plot to send 3,000 U.S.-manufactured military night-vision goggles to Iran.  Shahrazad Mir Gholikhan, 30, later retracted the plea and now is scheduled for trial Oct. 14. She faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Her attorney contends Gholikhan thought the deal involved binoculars.

• Russian helicopters: A Hallandale Beach businessman was charged in April with trying to sell 10 Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs to an undercover federal informant who told the dealer they were destined for Zimbabwe.  Military exports to the African country are banned. Peter Spitz, 70, owner of Russian Aircraft Services LLC, was first contacted last March about a potential helicopter purchase by the informant for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  According to court records, the informant told Spitz he was interested in buying seven MI-24 Russian attack helicopters and three MI-8T Russian military transport helicopters.  

[miamiherald.com]

New York Times
September 13, 2008 
Pg. 9

Albania: Whistle-Blower Found Dead

By C. J. Chivers

A whistle-blower who uncovered evidence of public corruption and deceptive
practices by a contractor in a Pentagon-sponsored arms deal was found dead
on a mountain road on Friday. Last year, the whistle-blower, Kosta Trebicka,
48, provided The New York Times and American investigators with evidence
that AEY Inc., an American company, had bought aging Chinese cartridges for
Afghanistan's army and police forces, repackaged them in unmarked boxes that
obscured their origin and claimed the ammunition was from Albania. His
accusations shook the Albanian government and the Pentagon. Mr. Trebicka had
told reporters for The Times several times that he feared for his safety. He
was found dead near his vehicle, and no cause of death was announced.
Albanian investigators said an autopsy would be performed.

If, someday, there are T-shirts sold in Iraq that read, "the United States invaded our country and all we got were these crappy tanks," here is the explanation for what happened.

In 2005, Defense Solutions, the Pennsylvania-based arms dealer that employs former Congressman Curt Weldon, got itself a contract to refurbish Soviet-era T-72 tanks for the Iraqi government.

The essence of Defense Solutions' proposal was to arrange a donation of of some 77 Hungarian-owned T-72s. The Hungarian were likely happy unload the outdated tanks for free, and the Iraqi government would pay Defense Solutions to refurbish them. That sounds fine, excep the contract was what many might consider a sweetheart deal. The contract appears to be a "cost plus percentage of cost fee" agreement, meaning Defense Solutions was essentially guaranteed a profit regardless of what condition the tanks were in or how much it cost to get them running (a copy of the contract,posted here as a PDF, was provided to DANGER ROOM).

Defense Solutions estimates the cost to refurbish the tanks at about $3.2 million, and the company is entitled to a fee based on eight percent of the costs. If the contract goes 75 percent over cost, Defense Solutions must notify the Iraqis, but that amount "will not act as a ceiling on the actual price of performance," the contract states.

Under typical U.S. defense contracts, fees are tied to performance (thus giving the contractor an incentive to keep costs down). Defense Solutions gets its fee, regardless. And with an eight percent fee, the more you spend, the more you earn. This would be a most unusual arrangement, at least in the United States, where cost plus percentage of cost contracts are prohibited under U.S. law. As federal acquisition regulations state quite clearly: "The cost-plus-a-percentage-of-cost system of contracting shall not be used (see 10 U.S.C. 2306(a) and 41 U.S.C. 254(b))."

The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing titled, “Examination of AEY Contracts with the U.S. Government” on Tuesday, June 24, 2008, in 2154 Rayburn House Office Building.

The hearing addressed failures by AEY, Inc., to provide weapons and ammunition under contracts with the United States Government, and the deficiencies within the government that allowed AEY to be awarded these and other contracts.

Story and related documents here.

 

Wed Jun 11, 2:45 AM ET

US Attorney General Michael Mukasey said Wednesday he was "very optimistic" that alleged Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout will be extradited from Thailand to face terrorism charges.

Bout, known as the "Merchant of Death" for his alleged role in fuelling some of the world's bloodiest conflicts with weapons, faces extradition hearings on July 28 after being captured by US and Thai agents in Bangkok on March 6.

"The case for extradition is very strong," Mukasey told reporters in Bangkok. "I'm very optimistic that the proper course will be followed and Viktor Bout will be extradited."

Mukasey praised Thai officials for their cooperation and said next month's hearings fell on his birthday.

"I can think of no better gift than the extradition proceeding to go forward on that day," he said.

Bout -- who faces life in prison if convicted by a US court -- has been held at a maximum-security prison outside Bangkok since his arrest, and has denied the charges against him.

Mukasey said the time taken since March to reach extradition hearings was only due to usual legal process.

"We are not at all disheartened that there has been a small delay," he said.

Thailand's foreign minister Noppadon Pattama said he had discussed Bout's case with the attorney general.

"I told him the case is in court and Thailand will follow its own juristic procedure. I assured him everything will be quick and equitable. There will be no delay," Noppadon said.

The US Department of Justice last month unsealed an indictment against Bout charging him with four counts of terrorism for seeking to sell millions of dollars of weapons to Colombia's FARC rebels.

He has also been charged with conspiracy to kill US officers or employees and conspiracy to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile.

Bout allegedly agreed to supply to the Marxist rebel group -- considered by Washington as a foreign terrorist organisation -- with surface-to-air missiles capable of bringing down helicopters and planes.

The former Soviet air force officer is also believed to have supplied arms to Taliban militia, Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda terror network, rebels in South America and former Liberian leader Charles Taylor.

[yahoo.com]

By Tom Hays
Associated Press
Saturday, June 14, 2008; A07

NEW YORK, June 13 -- A wealthy international arms dealer was extradited Friday to the United States to face charges that he supplied millions of dollars in weapons to Colombian rebels to attack American forces there.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents accompanied Monzer al-Kassar on a private flight from Madrid that arrived in New York on Friday. He was to be arraigned in federal court in Manhattan.

Kassar, who was born in Syria and is a longtime resident of Spain, was arrested in Madrid last June as part of a U.S. sting operation. An indictment accuses him of conspiring to support terrorists, conspiring to kill U.S. soldiers, conspiring to acquire and use antiaircraft missiles, and money laundering.

Kassar "intended to provide millions of dollars worth of legal weapons to a foreign terrorist organization to be used to kill Americans," U.S. Attorney Michael J. Garcia said in a statement.

Kassar was arrested and brought to the United States, Garcia said, "as a result of extraordinary cooperation with our international law enforcement partners."

Spain's National Court approved the extradition in October, and the Spanish government gave its final approval last week.

After Simon Mann and a band of South African mercenaries couldn't overthrow the government, Moto takes things in his own hands and tries to stage his own coup, using weapons in his car. Great country, that Equatorial Guinea place...

Exiled leader arrested in Spain over arms trafficking

By Madrid Bureau Chief Al Goodman
For CNN
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- Spanish police have arrested Equatorial Guinea opposition leader Severo Moto on suspicion of links to arms trafficking, a National Court spokeswoman told CNN on Tuesday.

Moto, 64, has been living in exile in Spain, the former colonial power in Equatorial Guinea.

He was arrested in Toledo province, south of Madrid, for alleged links to weapons found in a car in the port of Sagunto, in southeastern Spain. The car was allegedly to be shipped to Equatorial Guinea, said the court spokeswoman, who asked not to be identified.

Moto is due to appear before a judge at the National Court, probably on Wednesday, the spokeswoman said.

Last month, Spain's Supreme Court upheld a request to grant political refugee status to Moto.

He had enjoyed refugee status since the Spanish government granted it in 1986. But the government revoked the status in January 2006, leading Moto to launch a series of appeals which ultimately took him to the Supreme Court.

The U.S. State Department says courts in Equatorial Guinea have convicted Moto several times in absentia for attempting to overthrow the government.

He leads a banned opposition party called the Progress Party of Equatorial Guinea, according to Amnesty International, which has monitored his trials at home and has called them unfair.

[cnn.com]

14 Apr 2008 Tom Nicholson Politics & Society

AN ARMS trading company under investigation by the United States Congress for supplying worthless ammunition to Afghani forces recently bought weapons in Slovakia, The Slovak Spectator has learned.
AEY, Inc. of Miami Beach was awarded a $298 million contract in January 2007 by the US military to act as the main weapons procurer for native Afghani police and armed forces. However, the company lost that deal at the end of March after The New York Times reported that it had bought sub-standard, decades-old Chinese ammunition and weapons from Albania and then sold them to Afghani troops, claiming they were of Hungarian manufacture.

The firm also bought guns and ammunition for its Afghan contract in former Communist countries like Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, according to the Times. Afghani troops are equipped mainly with old Soviet-made weapons, and thus cannot be supplied from surplus Western stock.
AEY was listed as the "foreign contractual partner" on an export license for over 1.6 million rounds that it had obtained from the Slovak companies Petina International and ZVS Holding. The license was issued by the Economy Ministry on March 18.

Neither ZVS director Miroslav Solava nor business director Vladimír Ďuriš, both of whom signed the licence request, responded to repeated requests for comment. From its own stock, ZVS provided one million 7,62mm rounds, which fit machine guns of the kind used in former Warsaw Pact countries.

Petina, meanwhile, provided 636,435 rounds of [12.7 x] 108mm ammunition, which fits anti-aircraft machine guns. The company originally acquired the ammunition in 2002 from the Defence Ministry. "There must be some kind of mistake," said Petina boss Peter Peniaška. "We have nothing to do with them [AEY]."

Lessons Learned

Wednesday's Miami Herald article brings to light two recommendations:

1. If you're in the business of circumventing arms trade regulations, don't move to South Florida. There is a lot of not-so-smart competition and/or very smart federal agents in the same place.
2. If you're going to sell 'Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs' to a country like Zimbabwe, don't name your business 'Russian Aircraft Services LLC'   

South Florida arms-exporting cases

• Airplane parts: In June, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami charged a Broward County man with conspiring to export military aircraft parts to Iran. Traian Bujduveanu, 53, faces up to 20 years in prison and $1 million in fines if convicted of violating the U.S. Arms Export Control Act and the U.S.-Iran trade embargo. He was born in Romania but is a naturalized U.S. citizen who for the past 30 years has lived in Plantation, where he cares for his blind mother, according to his attorney.  Bujduveanu has pleaded not guilty, along with a California man charged with the same counts. Both are scheduled for trial in March.

• Made-in-China munitions: In June, a federal indictment charged a 22-year-old Miami Beach businessman with conspiring to sell Chinese-made ammunitions to Afghanistan security forces.  Efraim Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., allegedly sent 35 shipments worth $10 million overseas and tried to pass them off as Albanian-made. But the munitions were from China, which violated Diveroli's contract with the Pentagon, prosecutors said.  He faces more than 10 years in prison if convicted of intentionally misleading the U.S. government.

• Night-vision goggles: In May, a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale sentenced a woman to 29 months in prison after she pleaded guilty in a plot to send 3,000 U.S.-manufactured military night-vision goggles to Iran.  Shahrazad Mir Gholikhan, 30, later retracted the plea and now is scheduled for trial Oct. 14. She faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Her attorney contends Gholikhan thought the deal involved binoculars.

• Russian helicopters: A Hallandale Beach businessman was charged in April with trying to sell 10 Russian military helicopters equipped with guns, rockets and bombs to an undercover federal informant who told the dealer they were destined for Zimbabwe.  Military exports to the African country are banned. Peter Spitz, 70, owner of Russian Aircraft Services LLC, was first contacted last March about a potential helicopter purchase by the informant for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  According to court records, the informant told Spitz he was interested in buying seven MI-24 Russian attack helicopters and three MI-8T Russian military transport helicopters.  

[miamiherald.com]

Albania: Whistle-Blower Found Dead

New York Times
September 13, 2008 
Pg. 9

Albania: Whistle-Blower Found Dead

By C. J. Chivers

A whistle-blower who uncovered evidence of public corruption and deceptive
practices by a contractor in a Pentagon-sponsored arms deal was found dead
on a mountain road on Friday. Last year, the whistle-blower, Kosta Trebicka,
48, provided The New York Times and American investigators with evidence
that AEY Inc., an American company, had bought aging Chinese cartridges for
Afghanistan's army and police forces, repackaged them in unmarked boxes that
obscured their origin and claimed the ammunition was from Albania. His
accusations shook the Albanian government and the Pentagon. Mr. Trebicka had
told reporters for The Times several times that he feared for his safety. He
was found dead near his vehicle, and no cause of death was announced.
Albanian investigators said an autopsy would be performed.

Weldon Firm's Defective Tank Deal With Iraq

If, someday, there are T-shirts sold in Iraq that read, "the United States invaded our country and all we got were these crappy tanks," here is the explanation for what happened.

In 2005, Defense Solutions, the Pennsylvania-based arms dealer that employs former Congressman Curt Weldon, got itself a contract to refurbish Soviet-era T-72 tanks for the Iraqi government.

The essence of Defense Solutions' proposal was to arrange a donation of of some 77 Hungarian-owned T-72s. The Hungarian were likely happy unload the outdated tanks for free, and the Iraqi government would pay Defense Solutions to refurbish them. That sounds fine, excep the contract was what many might consider a sweetheart deal. The contract appears to be a "cost plus percentage of cost fee" agreement, meaning Defense Solutions was essentially guaranteed a profit regardless of what condition the tanks were in or how much it cost to get them running (a copy of the contract,posted here as a PDF, was provided to DANGER ROOM).

Defense Solutions estimates the cost to refurbish the tanks at about $3.2 million, and the company is entitled to a fee based on eight percent of the costs. If the contract goes 75 percent over cost, Defense Solutions must notify the Iraqis, but that amount "will not act as a ceiling on the actual price of performance," the contract states.

Under typical U.S. defense contracts, fees are tied to performance (thus giving the contractor an incentive to keep costs down). Defense Solutions gets its fee, regardless. And with an eight percent fee, the more you spend, the more you earn. This would be a most unusual arrangement, at least in the United States, where cost plus percentage of cost contracts are prohibited under U.S. law. As federal acquisition regulations state quite clearly: "The cost-plus-a-percentage-of-cost system of contracting shall not be used (see 10 U.S.C. 2306(a) and 41 U.S.C. 254(b))."

"That was my lemon I had to make lemonade out of..."

The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing titled, “Examination of AEY Contracts with the U.S. Government” on Tuesday, June 24, 2008, in 2154 Rayburn House Office Building.

The hearing addressed failures by AEY, Inc., to provide weapons and ammunition under contracts with the United States Government, and the deficiencies within the government that allowed AEY to be awarded these and other contracts.

Story and related documents here.

 

US attorney general 'optimistic' of Russian arms dealer extradition

Wed Jun 11, 2:45 AM ET

US Attorney General Michael Mukasey said Wednesday he was "very optimistic" that alleged Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout will be extradited from Thailand to face terrorism charges.

Bout, known as the "Merchant of Death" for his alleged role in fuelling some of the world's bloodiest conflicts with weapons, faces extradition hearings on July 28 after being captured by US and Thai agents in Bangkok on March 6.

"The case for extradition is very strong," Mukasey told reporters in Bangkok. "I'm very optimistic that the proper course will be followed and Viktor Bout will be extradited."

Mukasey praised Thai officials for their cooperation and said next month's hearings fell on his birthday.

"I can think of no better gift than the extradition proceeding to go forward on that day," he said.

Bout -- who faces life in prison if convicted by a US court -- has been held at a maximum-security prison outside Bangkok since his arrest, and has denied the charges against him.

Mukasey said the time taken since March to reach extradition hearings was only due to usual legal process.

"We are not at all disheartened that there has been a small delay," he said.

Thailand's foreign minister Noppadon Pattama said he had discussed Bout's case with the attorney general.

"I told him the case is in court and Thailand will follow its own juristic procedure. I assured him everything will be quick and equitable. There will be no delay," Noppadon said.

The US Department of Justice last month unsealed an indictment against Bout charging him with four counts of terrorism for seeking to sell millions of dollars of weapons to Colombia's FARC rebels.

He has also been charged with conspiracy to kill US officers or employees and conspiracy to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile.

Bout allegedly agreed to supply to the Marxist rebel group -- considered by Washington as a foreign terrorist organisation -- with surface-to-air missiles capable of bringing down helicopters and planes.

The former Soviet air force officer is also believed to have supplied arms to Taliban militia, Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda terror network, rebels in South America and former Liberian leader Charles Taylor.

[yahoo.com]

Spain Delivers Syrian Arms Dealer to U.S.

By Tom Hays
Associated Press
Saturday, June 14, 2008; A07

NEW YORK, June 13 -- A wealthy international arms dealer was extradited Friday to the United States to face charges that he supplied millions of dollars in weapons to Colombian rebels to attack American forces there.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents accompanied Monzer al-Kassar on a private flight from Madrid that arrived in New York on Friday. He was to be arraigned in federal court in Manhattan.

Kassar, who was born in Syria and is a longtime resident of Spain, was arrested in Madrid last June as part of a U.S. sting operation. An indictment accuses him of conspiring to support terrorists, conspiring to kill U.S. soldiers, conspiring to acquire and use antiaircraft missiles, and money laundering.

Kassar "intended to provide millions of dollars worth of legal weapons to a foreign terrorist organization to be used to kill Americans," U.S. Attorney Michael J. Garcia said in a statement.

Kassar was arrested and brought to the United States, Garcia said, "as a result of extraordinary cooperation with our international law enforcement partners."

Spain's National Court approved the extradition in October, and the Spanish government gave its final approval last week.

Exiled leader arrested in Spain over arms trafficking

After Simon Mann and a band of South African mercenaries couldn't overthrow the government, Moto takes things in his own hands and tries to stage his own coup, using weapons in his car. Great country, that Equatorial Guinea place...

Exiled leader arrested in Spain over arms trafficking

By Madrid Bureau Chief Al Goodman
For CNN
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- Spanish police have arrested Equatorial Guinea opposition leader Severo Moto on suspicion of links to arms trafficking, a National Court spokeswoman told CNN on Tuesday.

Moto, 64, has been living in exile in Spain, the former colonial power in Equatorial Guinea.

He was arrested in Toledo province, south of Madrid, for alleged links to weapons found in a car in the port of Sagunto, in southeastern Spain. The car was allegedly to be shipped to Equatorial Guinea, said the court spokeswoman, who asked not to be identified.

Moto is due to appear before a judge at the National Court, probably on Wednesday, the spokeswoman said.

Last month, Spain's Supreme Court upheld a request to grant political refugee status to Moto.

He had enjoyed refugee status since the Spanish government granted it in 1986. But the government revoked the status in January 2006, leading Moto to launch a series of appeals which ultimately took him to the Supreme Court.

The U.S. State Department says courts in Equatorial Guinea have convicted Moto several times in absentia for attempting to overthrow the government.

He leads a banned opposition party called the Progress Party of Equatorial Guinea, according to Amnesty International, which has monitored his trials at home and has called them unfair.

[cnn.com]

Arms trader also bought from Slovakia

14 Apr 2008 Tom Nicholson Politics & Society

AN ARMS trading company under investigation by the United States Congress for supplying worthless ammunition to Afghani forces recently bought weapons in Slovakia, The Slovak Spectator has learned.
AEY, Inc. of Miami Beach was awarded a $298 million contract in January 2007 by the US military to act as the main weapons procurer for native Afghani police and armed forces. However, the company lost that deal at the end of March after The New York Times reported that it had bought sub-standard, decades-old Chinese ammunition and weapons from Albania and then sold them to Afghani troops, claiming they were of Hungarian manufacture.

The firm also bought guns and ammunition for its Afghan contract in former Communist countries like Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, according to the Times. Afghani troops are equipped mainly with old Soviet-made weapons, and thus cannot be supplied from surplus Western stock.
AEY was listed as the "foreign contractual partner" on an export license for over 1.6 million rounds that it had obtained from the Slovak companies Petina International and ZVS Holding. The license was issued by the Economy Ministry on March 18.

Neither ZVS director Miroslav Solava nor business director Vladimír Ďuriš, both of whom signed the licence request, responded to repeated requests for comment. From its own stock, ZVS provided one million 7,62mm rounds, which fit machine guns of the kind used in former Warsaw Pact countries.

Petina, meanwhile, provided 636,435 rounds of [12.7 x] 108mm ammunition, which fits anti-aircraft machine guns. The company originally acquired the ammunition in 2002 from the Defence Ministry. "There must be some kind of mistake," said Petina boss Peter Peniaška. "We have nothing to do with them [AEY]."