US businessman admits making illegal exports to Pak atomic, space agencies

A 43-year-old business owner in the US has pleaded guilty to exporting products without a license to Pakistani atomic and space agencies in violation of US federal laws and faces up to 20 years in prison.

Imran Khan, of North Haven, Connecticut, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty on June 2 in Hartford federal court to violating US export law, US Attorney for the District of Connecticut Deirdre Daly said.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from at least 2012 to December 2016, Khan and others were engaged in a scheme to purchase goods that were controlled under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and export those goods without a license to Pakistan, in violation of the EAR.

Khan conducted business as Brush Locker Tools or as Kauser Enterprises-USA.

When asked by US manufacturers about the end-user for a product, Khan either informed the manufacturer that the product would remain in the US, or he completed an end-user certification indicating that the product would not be exported.

After the products were purchased, they were shipped by the manufacturer to Khan's North Haven residence or to a business owned by him.

The products were then shipped to Pakistan on behalf of either the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) or the National Institute of Lasers and Optronics (NILOP), all of which were listed on the US Department of Commerce Entity List, the Justice Department said in a statement.

"The illegal exportation of sensitive technology to prohibited entities such as PAEC, SUPARCO and NILOP, poses a significant threat to our national security," said Leigh- Alistair Barzey, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Northeast Field Office.

Khan never obtained a license to export any item to the designated entity even though he knew that a license was required prior to export.

He pleaded guilty to one count of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

In pleading guilty, Khan specifically admitted that, between August 2012 and January 2013, he procured, received and exported to PAEC an "Alpha Duo Spectrometer" without a license to do so.

Khan is scheduled to be sentenced by US District Judge Vanessa Bryant in August 2017, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.

He has been released on a USD 100,000 bond since he was arrested in December last year.

"The US Attorney’s office in Connecticut is committed to working with our federal law enforcement partners to ensure that sensitive technology, manufactured in the US and elsewhere, does not fall into the wrong hands," Daly said.