Sanctions Evasion Scheme
California Tech CEO Accused of Sending U.S. Technology to Iran's Nuclear and Military Entities
Anonymous
Jamshid Ghomi, a 63-year-old CEO based in Newport Beach/Newport Coast and leading Tehran technology firm Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co. Ltd., was arrested on federal charges accusing him of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions on Iran. Prosecutors allege that between about 2011 and 2023 he arranged illegal procurement and shipment of U.S.-origin networking, security, and encryption equipment for Iranian state entities, including organizations tied to Iran’s nuclear program and military. The complaint says he used personal eBay and PayPal accounts, front companies, and UAE intermediaries to route goods without required licenses from the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control, and that the equipment was supplied during multiple years to Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization and Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. Prosecutors also allege he laundered more than $15 million in Iranian revenue into the United States through offshore shell-company channels and obscured the transfers on tax returns. Ghomi faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. He is scheduled for an initial court appearance in Santa Ana as the case continues.
Key Points
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Investigators say Ghomi’s Tehran-based company, Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co. Ltd. (FPR), generated more than $10 million in annual sales and served a customer base described as including sensitive Iranian state entities and officials—suggesting the alleged sanctions-evasion operation had significant scale.
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A Washington Times report says an FPR 2017 contract with Iran Computer Industries was signed by Ghomi and “expressly identified the buyer as the ministry,” adding documentary detail to prosecutors’ account of who the equipment was ultimately intended for.
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The U.S. Department of Justice quoted National Security Assistant Attorney General John A. Eisenberg saying: “As alleged, Ghomi enriched himself by supplying U.S. technology to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and other sanctioned entities responsible for Iran’s nuclear program.”
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Beyond the sanctions allegations, Fox LA reports that prosecutors say Ghomi built a custom Newport Coast mansion valued at about $35 million while “reported virtually no income” to the IRS, maxing out at $20,684 in a single year—and even claimed the federal Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income families across seven different tax years.
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Fox LA describes Ghomi as a dual U.S.-Iranian citizen, providing additional background on his identity and the cross-border nature of the alleged conduct.
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