{"id":2592803,"date":"2026-04-20T12:28:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T16:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/woman-arrested-at-lax-airport-for-allegedly-trafficking-weapons-for-iran\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T12:29:48","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T16:29:48","slug":"woman-arrested-at-lax-airport-for-allegedly-trafficking-weapons-for-iran","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/woman-arrested-at-lax-airport-for-allegedly-trafficking-weapons-for-iran\/","title":{"rendered":"Woman Arrested at LAX Airport for Allegedly Trafficking Weapons for Iran"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwoman-arrested-at-lax-airport-for-allegedly-trafficking-weapons-for-iran%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2592803&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A California woman, Shamim Mafi, 44, of Woodland Hills, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport on arms-trafficking charges tied to Iran. She is accused of brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured by Iran and sold to Sudan, violating 50 U.S.C. \u00a7 1705, with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/man-charged-with-attempted-murder-following-series-of-bb-gun-shootings-on-southern-california-freeways\/\" title=\"Man Charged With Attempted Murder Following Series Of BB Gun Shootings On Southern California Freeways\">potential maximum sentence<\/a> of 20 years in federal prison. Mafi, an Iranian national who became a lawful permanent resident in 2016, allegedly ran an Oman-based company, Atlas International Business, with a co-conspirator and moved over $7 million in 2025 to ship weapons. Court documents claim she brokered the sale of 55,000 bomb fuses to sudan and submitted a letter of intent to Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to obtain the fuses. She emigrated from Iran to Istanbul in 2013 before settling in Los Angeles, and prosecutors say she worked for iran\u2019s Ministry of Intelligence and Security to sell weapons. The complaint also alleges some weapons sold to Sudan originated in China,and that Mafi used a complex network of money transfers to avoid detection,<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >including cash transactions<\/a>.In 2024, a Sudanese broker sought to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/charles-lipson-putins-fresh-cannon-fodder-and-nuclear-threats-wont-work\/\" title=\"Charles Lipson: Putin&#039;s Fresh Cannon Fodder and Nuclear Threats Won&#039;t Work\">buy drones<\/a> as Iran sent arms to Russia amid the Ukraine war.The Los angeles Times and NBC News have reported on the case.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>A California woman has been arrested on charges that she was helping Iran traffic arms.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Last night, Shamim Mafi, 44, of Woodland Hills, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/feds-foreign-corruption-double-standard-they-protected-bidens-even-as-they-bore-down-on-trumpworld\/\" title=\"Feds\u2019 Foreign-Corruption Double Standard: They Protected Bidens Even as They Bore Down on Trumpworld\">trafficking arms<\/a> on behalf of the government of Iran,&rdquo; First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/USAttyEssayli\/status\/2045856496945439096\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;She is charged with a violation of 50 U.S.C. &sect; 1705 for brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured by Iran and sold to Sudan,&rdquo; he posted.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If convicted, she faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. Mafi is an Iranian national who became a lawful permanent resident of the United States in 2016,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Last night, Shamim Mafi, 44, of Woodland Hills, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport for trafficking arms on behalf of the government of Iran. She is charged with a violation of 50 U.S.C. &sect; 1705 for brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/l39Gf1WVed\">pic.twitter.com\/l39Gf1WVed<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/USAttyEssayli\/status\/2045856496945439096?\">April 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>A criminal complaint from March 12 said that Mafi and an unnamed co-conspirator ran an Oman-based company called Atlas International Business, which allegedly took over $7 million in 2025 to ship weapons, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/us-news\/los-angeles-woman-arrested-iranian-arms-trafficking-charge-rcna340932?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma&amp;taid=69e619f419a03d0001b28088&amp;utm_campaign=trueanthem&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NBC News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Court documents said Mafi and her co-conspirator brokered the sale of 55,000 bomb fuses to the Sudanese government, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/boeing-agrees-to-2-5b-settlement-over-737-max-crashes\/\" title=\"Boeing agrees to .5B settlement over 737 MAX crashes\">court documents<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In connection with the transaction, Mafi submitted a letter of intent to Iran&rsquo;s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (&lsquo;IRGC&rsquo;) to purchase the bomb fuses for Sudan,&rdquo; the complaint said.<\/p>\n<p>Mafi emigrated from Iran to Istanbul in 2013 and then to the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, where after trips to Iran, Turkey, and Oman, she worked for Iran&rsquo;s Ministry of Intelligence and Security to sell weapons for Iran, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2026-04-19\/feds-woodland-hills-woman-arrested-at-lax-trafficked-arms-to-iran\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Los Angeles Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The complaint said that in 2024, a Sudanese weapons broker contacted Mafi to buy Qods Mohajer-6 drones, which Iran has been sending to Russia amid the Ukraine war.<\/p>\n<p>The complaint alleged that some weapons Mafi sold to Sudan came from China.<\/p>\n<p>Mafi allegedly built a complex web of moving money around to avoid detection.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I[t] should be in small amounts,&rdquo; Mafi told a contact in 2024, according to the complaint. &ldquo;In turkey we can just accept in exchange. And it should be in cash.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The complaint noted one meeting in which there was a glitch.<\/p>\n<p>Sudanese officials in Tehran wanted to inspect bomb fuses, but Mafi was not allowed to accompany them because Iran did not allow women in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps facility where the fuses were stored.<\/p>\n<p>Mafi had to send a man in her place.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here\u2019s a concise paraphrase of the main points:<\/p>\n<p>A California woman, Shamim Mafi, 44, of Woodland Hills, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport on charges that she helped Iran traffic arms. She is accused of brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition made in Iran and sold to Sudan, violating 50 U.S.C. \u00a7 1705. If convicted, she could face up to 20 years in federal prison. Mafi, an Iranian national who became a lawful permanent resident in 2016, allegedly ran Atlas International Business with an unnamed partner-an Oman-based company that prosecutors say took in more than $7 million in 2025 to ship weapons. Court documents claim she brokered the sale of 55,000 bomb fuses to Sudan and submitted a letter of intent to Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to purchase them. She emigrated from Iran to Istanbul in 2013 and later settled in the Los Angeles area after trips to Iran, Turkey, and Oman, reportedly working for Iran\u2019s Ministry of Intelligence and Security to sell weapons. The complaint notes a 2024 deal involving Qods Mohajer-6 drones and suggests some weapons sold to Sudan may have originated in China. Prosecutors say Mafi used a complex scheme to move money in small amounts to avoid detection, including a 2024 incident where Sudanese officials in Tehran wanted to inspect bomb fuses but Iran did not allow women in the IRGC facility, so she sent a man in her place. <\/p>\n<p>Would you like a shorter summary or a version focused on specific details (e.g., the legal charges, the alleged money moves, or the timeline)?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2592804,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-04-20T104948.849.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[5175,3823,15861,23344,78145],"class_list":["post-2592803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-arrest","tag-iran","tag-lax","tag-national-security","tag-weapons-trafficking-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-04-20T104948.849.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2592803"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592803\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2592808,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592803\/revisions\/2592808"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2592804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2592803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2592803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2592803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}