Info:
Nicholas Hovan is charged with one count of conspiracy and one count of violating IEEPA, based on allegations that from July 2019 to February 2020 they conspired in Philadelphia and elsewhere to arrange for the purchase of oil from the Islamic Republic of Iran, in violation of United States economic sanctions imposed on Iran, for sale to a refinery in China;
The Complaint alleges that defendants Nicholas Hovan, James Fuchs, Robert Thwaites, and Daniel Ray Lane arranged to purchase the oil and sell it to a refinery in China represented by defendant Zhenyu Wang, a/k/a “Bill Wang.”;
“With the goal of illegally enriching themselves, the defendants conspired for over eight months to devise a scheme to violate U.S. sanctions imposed on Iran, particularly the ban on foreign oil sales,”;
“The defendants in this case allegedly committed serious federal crimes that flew in direct contradiction to the United States’ national security interests,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain for the Eastern District of Pennsylvannia. “By devising a scheme to purchase oil from Iran, conceal its origins via a refinery in China and make tremendous profits, the defendants were also directly financially benefitting the nation of Iran in its quest to become a nuclear power, thus jeopardizing the safety and security of the United States and our allies. These five defendants will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law in order to send the message that this type of subversion of U.S. policy and law will not be tolerated.”;
If convicted, the defendants each face a maximum possible sentence of 25 years’ incarceration, as well as a maximum possible fine of $1.25 million;
Industry:
Oil Industry
Also Known As:
Nichola Hovan
Born:
1987
Country:
United States
Address:
New York, NY, United States
Reason for the color:
» Four Texans, One New Yorker Arrested for Conspiracy to Sell Sanctioned Iranian Oil to Refinery in China for Huge Profit;