Arms Export Control Act Violations

The Arms Export Control Act gives the President of the United States the power to control the import and export of arms, military equipment and information related to weapons systems. Prosecutions relating to the Arms Export Control Act are increasingly prominent following the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as these wars have required numerous weapons and equipment. In many cases, weapons and equipment earmarked for these wars have gone missing or unaccounted for.

Both the military and the FBI are playing a large role in tracking down missing military equipment and weapons. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducts an industry outreach program called the Project Shield America to prevent foreign enemies, terrorists, and criminal networks from obtaining U.S. munitions and strategic technology. This involves selectively inspecting suspect export shipments, ICE Special Agents carrying out investigations country-wide and cooperating and sharing information with friendly governments around the world.

Therefore, anyone who is legally engaging in the export of arms to foreign countries should be aware that they carry a significant liability and should be aware of the Arms Export Control Act and all other legislation pertaining to the export of military articles. The Department of Commerce and other criminal enforcement agencies have increased oversight and are targeting companies that are subject to the AECA.

Violating the Arms Export Control Act is incredibly serious and, depending on the facts of the case and the exact charge being brought, it can result in up to 20 years in prison and a million dollar fine.

Moreover, export violations often involve abuse and illegal activity involving financial systems which leads to additional charges such as money laundering charges, smuggling, fraud and making false statements. ​

Examples of Defense Against Arms Export Control Act

Violations ​We highly recommend that import export companies should have mandatory and ongoing compliance training for their staff. Criminal indictments and convictions can ruin a company’s operation and reputation.

Weapons trafficking and smuggling can involve terrorists, organized crime and powerful political figures. People such as this often use threats of violence to intimidate other people and often someone has been compelled or coerced into taking part in weapon smuggling by threats of violence against themselves or their families. Duress can often come into play as a natural defense.

Arms export control cases often depend on the results of undercover investigations. Naturally, during an undercover investigation, it is possible that the government agent originates and induces a defendant to commit a crime that he or she had no predisposition to commit. This would constitute entrapment and the case would be dismissed.

Moreover, the commodities control list and munitions list stipulated is very long, complex, and subject to constant change. Therefore, it is only natural that people may export a product not knowing that it requires an export license. If this is the case for you, we invite you to contact us as soon as possible so we can demonstrate that you did not act with criminal intent and work towards having the charges dropped.