Smuggling Case Tied to Soviet Bid to Bolster Air Defense

A high-tech smuggling operation based in Belgium sought U.S. computers to bolster the Soviet air defense system after a West German pilot landed in Moscow’s Red Square on a lark, a federal official said Wednesday.

The disclosure by Patrick O’Brien, the Customs Service’s top agent in Miami, came as five people and two corporations were indicted by a federal grand jury in a smuggling case involving $1.8 million worth of sensitive computer equipment.

The federal government based its case on information from a Dutch citizen caught working last year as an operative for the Belgian-based network, O’Brien said.

‘Found in Disrepair’

The informant, Eddy Haak, was told by others in the network dealing on behalf of Eastern Bloc countries that U.S. computers were needed “to shore up their air defense after they found that it was ineffective and in disrepair. They discovered this when a West German pilot landed in Red Square,” O’Brien said after the indictment was announced.

Mathias Rust, 19, evaded Soviet air defenses as he flew a small Cessna aircraft into Soviet airspace, buzzed the Kremlin and landed before a startled crowd in Red Square on May 28, 1987. He was imprisoned in the Soviet Union for 14 months.

His unhindered penetration of Soviet airspace resulted in a shake-up of the Soviet military and, according to O’Brien, secret orders for U.S. computers that could be used to prevent a recurrence.

Customs agents infiltrated the U.S. end of the smuggling ring after Haak was lured to the United States and arrested, O’Brien said. The indictment covers deals made with undercover Customs agents who replaced the smugglers, O’Brien said.

Export Act Cited

The indictment charges violation of the Export Administration Act, which limits the export of sensitive U.S. materials, and conspiracy to export two Digital Equipment Corp. VAX 8820 computer systems via Canada to Bulgaria.

The indictment named Steve Smylie, 39, and his wife, Carole, 36, of Houston and their Technology International Consultants Inc.; Warren Wetstein of Toronto and his Asset Conversion Specialists Inc., and computer company employees Jerry Blalock, 52, of Houston, and Rick Parish, 44, of Dallas.

The four Texans were taken into custody last week, and Wetstein is being sought in Canada, O’Brien said. The name of the suspected Belgian ringleader has not been released.

If convicted, the defendants face up to 15 years in federal prison and fines of up to $6.5 million. The companies face fines of up to $6.8 million.

The computers listed in the indictment, described by Digital as top-of-the-line, general-purpose equipment, were seized last week in Colorado Springs, Colo., as they were being prepared for export.