Consultant Mahmoud Reza Banki *05

Mahmoud Reza Banki *05, an Iranian-American who was arrested on allegations of breaking trade sanctions in 2012, was featured in a recent PBS NewsHour report about how economic sanctions against Iran affect Iranian-Americans living in the U.S.:

Prosecutors claimed Banki had violated trade sanctions with Iran by accepting about $3.4 million from family members in Iran. He was accused of running a “hawala,” or informal money transfer business, without a license, that moved money to and from Iran in violation of the U.S. embargo. ...

Eventually, an appeals court overturned his conviction and closed the case in June 2012, but not before prosecutors had moved for a retrial on the same charges. All told, Banki served 22 months in jail, 11 of which were spent in a high-security prison.

Read more at PBS.org