Kambiz Eghbali, also known as Cameron Eghbali, was arrested in Los Angeles following an indictment that charges him and two Iranian nationals, Hamid Hajipour and Babak Bahizad, with violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The arrest occurred after the indictment was unsealed. Bahizad and Hajipour remain at large.
The indictment alleges that from March 2014 through September 2019, Eghbali and others conspired to send digital and physical gift cards loaded with U.S. dollars to Iran unlawfully. It is claimed that Eghbali listed his company as a videogame wholesaler in California to sell these gift cards, which were then provided to Bahizad for his gaming company in Iran and to Hajipour for his mobile software application service company. Payments for these cards were allegedly made by transferring money from Iran to Eghbali’s U.S.-based bank accounts using third parties in other countries to avoid detection by U.S. regulators.
The IEEPA and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations (ITSR) restrict transactions involving Iran due to national security threats posed by Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons and sponsorship of terrorism. These regulations prohibit exporting goods or services from the United States or by a U.S. person without authorization from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
If convicted, each defendant could face up to 20 years in prison for IEEPA violations, 30 years for bank fraud violations, and 20 years for money laundering violations. The indictment also indicates that the United States intends to seize all property traceable to proceeds of the offense.
Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division announced the arrest along with U.S. Attorney Martin E. Estrada for the Central District of California and Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI’s National Security Branch.
The FBI is leading the investigation with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anna Boylan and Mark Takla for the Central District of California along with Trial Attorneys David J. Ryan and Leslie Esbrook from the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
It is important to note that an indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.