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U.S. authorities have charged the leader of a Japanese criminal organization with conspiring to smuggle nuclear material from Myanmar for use by Iran.
Suspect Takeshi Ebisawa (60), who is said to be a Yakuza boss, and co-defendant Sonhop Sinhasiri (61), a Thai national, were exposed in a sting operation led by the Drug Enforcement Agency, and their alleged crimes were uncovered and they were arrested for drugs, weapons, and nuclear materials. was indicted on suspicion of trafficking. Administration (DEA).
DEA Administrator Ann Milgram said the men “went so far as to provide uranium and weapons-grade plutonium to Iran in the full expectation that it would use it in a nuclear weapon.”
The new indictment against the pair says Ebisawa’s “criminal activities include large-scale drug and arms trafficking, and his international criminal network extends to Asia, Europe, and the United States, among others.” It is stated that.
It added that in early 2020, Ebisawa told another person and a DEA official that he had access to “a large amount of nuclear material that he wanted to sell.”
Matthew G. Olsen, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, said, “I shudder to imagine the consequences if these efforts are successful, but the Department of Justice is poised to traffick these materials and compromise the national security of the United States.” “We will hold accountable those who threaten international stability.” ”
Ebisawa is charged with conspiring to sell weapons-grade nuclear materials and lethal drugs from Myanmar and to purchase military weapons on behalf of armed groups.
The two were indicted in 2022 on international drug trafficking and firearms offenses. The new charges were included in a superseding indictment.
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