Lebanese foreign national sentenced 44 months in prison for conspiring to smuggle US-made drill rigs to Iran

Brian Assi, 63, has been sentenced to 44 months in prison for the attempted unlawful export of goods from the United States to Iran without a license, attempted smuggling goods from the United States, submitting false or misleading export information, as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

“The defendant conspired to export millions of dollars of U.S.-made heavy machinery to Iran, a leading state sponsor of terrorism,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The National Security Division will find and prosecute those who illegally sell American products to our adversaries.”

“The defendant threatened US economic and national security by conspiring and concealing his efforts to circumvent our export controls to provide heavy machinery to Iran, a designated state sponsor of terrorism for the past 40 years,” said US Attorney for the Northern District of Florida John P. Heckin. “My office will continue to aggressively pursue anyone who violates our laws and offers material support to America’s enemies.”

Assi was convicted of the charges in October 2024. At the trial, evidence was presented that displayed Assi was a salesman of heavy machinery in the Middle East and "conspired with individuals affiliated with Sakht Abzar Pars Co. (SAP-Iran), based in Tehran, Iran, to export U.S.-made heavy machinery indirectly to Iran" without getting the proper approvals, per the DOJ. The rigs he attempted to smuggle were blasthole drills from the US subsidiary of Assi’s employer and create holes in the ground for mining.

The scheme was orchestrated to facilitate the sale of the US drills to Iran through an Iraq-based purchaser, and then tried to export them to Iran and concealed any involvement from the Iranians in the purchasing of the machinery.