Two Men Tried to Illegally Export Military Parts to China, U.S. Says

Undercover agents caught two Orange County men trying to illegally export aerospace parts and other military technology to China, including components for fighter jets, attack helicopters and surface-to-air missiles, according to a federal indictment unsealed Thursday.

Amanullah Khan, 54, was already in custody in Santa Ana on an unrelated parole violation when he was arrested Wednesday. Ziad Jamil Gammoh, 53, was arrested Monday at his home in Tustin and appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom the next day. Neither of their attorneys could be reached for comment.

The men were charged with conspiracy and failure to obtain export licenses under federal statutes that regulate international arms traffic.

The indictment, handed up by a federal grand jury in Washington, alleges that Khan and Gammoh operated United Aircraft & Electronics in Anaheim, through which they bought and resold aircraft parts to private and government buyers.

The list included components for the F-4 Phantom fighter jet, the F-5 Freedom Fighter/Tiger II fighters, the F-14 Tomcat fighter, the AH-1J attack helicopter and Hawk surface-to-air missiles.

Prospective customers could find the company through advertisements on a database, according to the indictment. To fill orders, the defendants would allegedly buy the parts from vendors and manufacturers, then package them for export without the required license from the U.S. State Department.

Agents from the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement set up a fictitious Chinese company called Sino-American Aviation Supply, purportedly based in Shenyang. They placed five orders for a variety of controlled military components between November 2000 and June 2001, later intercepting each of these shipments before they left the United States.

Michael J. Garcia, the acting assistant secretary for immigration and customs enforcement, said preventing the illegal export of critical military technology is one of the most important goals of his agency and the new Department of Homeland Security.

“The items at the heart of this investigation are controlled for good reason,” he said. “They are sensitive U.S. military components that have significant strategic value.”