Cosmetics Company President Arrested for Violating US Sanctions on Iran
The president of a Long Island, New York-based cosmetics company, Michael Rose, was arrested for allegedly selling more than $350,000 in cosmetic goods to an Iranian importer in violation of U.S. sanctions on the Middle Eastern nation, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced in an April 6 news release. Between 2015 and 2018, Rose, of Ridgefield, Connecticut, allegedly exported the goods to an Iranian importer to fulfill a contract the two parties signed, making the importer the sole distributor of Rose's cosmetics in Iran. The goods skirted U.S. sanctions via front companies that had Rose sending his cosmetics to the United Arab Emirates. Rose also allegedly filed false and misleading information on Commerce Department Shipper's Export Declaration forms, declaring that the “ultimate consignee” for the goods was the UAE and not Iran.
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Rose is charged with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, conspiring to launder money and conspiring to commit bank fraud, which carry maximum prison sentences of 20, 20 and 30 years, respectively. “Whatever his motivation -- greed or something more sinister -- we allege Mr. Rose intentionally disguised his products’ ultimate destination and lied about those products’ prices to limit his customs liability,” FBI Assistant Director William Sweeney said. “It’s a federal crime to violate sanctions the United States put in place to protect our national interests from Iran and other designated nation states. Mr. Rose may have thought the rules didn’t apply to him, but, if he did, today’s action demonstrates otherwise.”