IRGC
United States v. Bahaddin Ayan and 6 others
Status: Bahaddin Ayan: Charged, February 2, 2024; Behnam Shahriyari: Charged, February 2, 2024; Kasim Oztas: Charged, February 2, 2024; Mohammad Sadegh Karimian: Charged, February 2, 2024; Mohammadreza Aliakbari: Charged, February 2, 2024; Morteza Rostam Ghasemi: Charged, February 2, 2024; Sitki Ayan: Charged, February 2, 2024
- District
- Southern District of New York
- Docket number
- Not matched
- Group named in DOJ releases
- IRGC
- Statutes
- 18 U.S.C. § 2339B
- First DOJ release
- February 2, 2024
Primary Sources
- Justice Department Announces Terrorism and Sanctions-Evasion Charges and Seizures Linked to Illicit, Billion-Dollar Global Oil Trafficking Network That Finances Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Its Malign Activities, Office of Public Affairs, February 2, 2024
- U.S. Attorney Announces Terrorism And Sanctions-Evasion Charges Against Leaders Of A Billion-Dollar Oil Laundering Network Orchestrated By Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York, February 2, 2024
Status and dates follow these DOJ releases. Docket details from CourtListener (RECAP).
Bahaddin Ayan
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
To sell NIOC crude oil to government-affiliated buyers in China, the network used the ASB Group of companies in Turkey, owned by SITKI AYAN, as well as intermediary companies in Oman, Greece, and elsewhere.
- Age
- 35 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Behnam Shahriyari
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
SHAHRIYARI, a senior Qods Force official; KARIMIAN, who acts as an agent of the Qods Force in oil laundering transactions; and ALIAKBARI participated in negotiations among the participants and monitored the progress of the oil sales, oil shipments, and the Qods Force’s receipt of the oil proceeds.
- Age
- 58 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Kasim Oztas
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
OZTAS, who was a manager of the ASB Group of companies, also assisted SITKI AYAN in carrying out the scheme and finalizing agreements with ASB Group’s partners.
- Age
- 41 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Mohammad Sadegh Karimian
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
SHAHRIYARI, a senior Qods Force official; KARIMIAN, who acts as an agent of the Qods Force in oil laundering transactions; and ALIAKBARI participated in negotiations among the participants and monitored the progress of the oil sales, oil shipments, and the Qods Force’s receipt of the oil proceeds.
- Age
- 36 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Mohammadreza Aliakbari
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
SHAHRIYARI, a senior Qods Force official; KARIMIAN, who acts as an agent of the Qods Force in oil laundering transactions; and ALIAKBARI participated in negotiations among the participants and monitored the progress of the oil sales, oil shipments, and the Qods Force’s receipt of the oil proceeds.
- Age
- 56 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Morteza Rostam Ghasemi
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
Commander Ghasemi again authorized and approved key agreements between the Government of Iran and its foreign partners and resolved financial disputes that arose among the participants in the scheme.
- Age
- 32 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Sitki Ayan
- Status
- Charged (DOJ release, February 2, 2024)
- From the DOJ release:
To sell NIOC crude oil to government-affiliated buyers in China, the network used the ASB Group of companies in Turkey, owned by SITKI AYAN, as well as intermediary companies in Oman, Greece, and elsewhere.
- Age
- 61 (per DOJ release of February 2, 2024)
- Charges as described by DOJ
- conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization (IRGC), sanctions evasion, fraud, and money laundering
- Charged or arrested
- February 2, 2024
- Custody
- DOJ describes the defendant as at large
Cite: Middle East Forum, Islamist Terrorism Prosecutions, "United States v. Bahaddin Ayan and 6 others," accessed October 13, 2026, https://cases.meforum.org/case/us-v-ayan-2024/