Opinion ID: 2791801
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Facts of Alexander’s Conspiracy

Text: Alexander was the chief executive officer and part-owner of Hyrdajet Technology, LLC, a company based in Dalton, Georgia, that manufactures waterjet cutting systems. Alexander was also the chief executive officer, manager, and partowner of Hydrajet Mena, a company located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. 2 Case: 14-10253 Date Filed: 04/07/2015 Page: 3 of 20 Hydrajet Mena sold machines made by Hydrajet Technology to customers in the Middle East and provided technical support to those customers. In 2006, Alexander received a request for prices of cutting machines from Ali Shojale, the managing director of Parand Machine Company, located in Iran. Alexander directed his employees to quote a “reasonable” price, “at least” for the “first system” they sent to Iran, to help build a strong “base,” and Alexander advised his employees that Shojale was an Iranian dealer. Shojale then communicated with a representative of Hydrajet Mena about a potential sale for several months. At a meeting in Dubai, Alexander also negotiated the price for the machines with Karim Babakhani, an Iranian businessman. Babakhani was associated with Parand and with the Negin Sanat Sadr Company in Iran. At Alexander’s instruction, employees of Hydrajet Mena wrote “Kareem Country” on documents with information about sales to Iran because the United States “was not selling any machines to Iran.” In 2007, Hydrajet Technology shipped two waterjet cutting machines to Hydrajet Mena in Dubai, where the machines then were shipped to Parand and the Negin Sanat Sadr Company, both in Tehran. Alexander also sold a pump system to Babakhani, who then corresponded with an employee of Hydrajet Mena to schedule installation of the machines. Alexander informed two employees of 3 Case: 14-10253 Date Filed: 04/07/2015 Page: 4 of 20 Hydrajet Mena that they would travel to Iran to install the machines and provide training for the users of the machines. In 2008, Nabil Mansour, a silent partner in Hydrajet Technology, informed a special agent of the Office of Export Enforcement that Alexander had exported machines to Iran without a license. Special agents then executed a warrant to search Alexander’s home and the business offices of Hydrajet Technology, where they made copies of hard drives that contained invoices and emails about the sales. The day after the searches, Alexander volunteered to meet with special agents from the Office. At the meeting, Alexander admitted that he knew about the sales and had “the final say” in the price of the machines, but he told the special agents that he had been “pressured” into making the sale by one of his employees. In 2011, a special agent arrested Alexander when he entered the United States at the Atlanta airport. A federal grand jury later indicted Alexander on one count of conspiracy to export products to Iran without a license, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. § 1705, associated regulations, 31 C.F.R. §§ 560.203–.204, and the federal conspiracy statute, 18 U.S.C. § 371.