The Region - News from March 10, 1987

An Encino businessman convicted of smuggling embargoed military equipment to Iran lost his bid for a new trial, but U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson said he will consider the federal government’s role in shipping arms to Iran in deciding whether to reduce Hassam Kangerloo’s 30-month sentence. Kangerloo’s attorney, Donald B. Marks, argued that the government nullified the ban on weapons shipments to Iran by conducting its own covert arms deal. Government attorneys say the Administration’s actions, though potentially illegal, did not waive the obligation of private citizens to follow the law.