Iran’s Arms Network Has an American Address: The Arrest of Shamim Mafi
Shamim Mafi, a 44-year-old Iranian national and US green card holder residing in Woodland Hills, California, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport in April 2026. Federal agents intercepted her as she attempted to board a flight to Turkey, fearing she would flee the country. Mafi is charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act for allegedly brokering lethal weapons deals on behalf of Iran. Prosecutors claim she facilitated the sale of Mohajer-6 armed drones, bomb fuses, ammunition, and other military hardware to Sudan’s Ministry of Defense through her Oman-based shell company, Atlas International Business LLC. The primary transaction involved a contract worth over $72.5 million, for which Mafi reportedly received more than $7 million. Payments were allegedly structured to evade detection using informal money-exchange systems and cash deliveries. This case highlights the extent of Iranian intelligence networks within the United States, particularly in Southern California. Mafi has not entered a plea and remains in custody awaiting a detention hearing, while authorities investigate her role as a potential linchpin in a broader global arms pipeline.
Editorial responsibility
- No named human review is recorded for this page.
- Reports are grouped by semantic similarity and deterministic rules. Language models may assist titles, summaries, translation and cross-source analysis; the page itself is projected from evidence records.
- Current automated evidence projection
Wire timeline
Iran’s Arms Network Has an American Address: The Arrest of Shamim Mafi
Shamim Mafi, a 44-year-old Iranian national and US green card holder residing in Woodland Hills, California, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport in April 2026. Federal agents intercepted her as she attempted to board a flight to Turkey, fearing she would flee the country. Mafi is charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act for allegedly brokering lethal weapons deals on behalf of Iran. Prosecutors claim she facilitated the sale of Mohajer-6 armed drones, bomb fuses, ammunition, and other military hardware to Sudan’s Ministry of Defense through her Oman-based shell company, Atlas International Business LLC. The primary transaction involved a contract worth over $72.5 million, for which Mafi reportedly received more than $7 million. Payments were allegedly structured to evade detection using informal money-exchange systems and cash deliveries. This case highlights the extent of Iranian intelligence networks within the United States, particularly in Southern California. Mafi has not entered a plea and remains in custody awaiting a detention hearing, while authorities investigate her role as a potential linchpin in a broader global arms pipeline.