- HARTFORD, Connecticut (AP)
-- A New York City businessman admitted Wednesday to participating in an
arms-smuggling ring that shipped missile and fighter jet components from
the United States to Israel and possibly on to Iran.
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- Leib Kohn pleaded guilty to conspiracy, admitting only
that he knew the weapons parts were bound for Israel. Investigators allege
an Israeli arms dealer may have been relaying the equipment to Iran.
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- "At least some of the parts were ultimately destined
for Iran," U.S. Attorney Kevin O'Connor said. "We're not in a
position to say definitely which parts or whether the parts ultimately
made it there."
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- Kohn used his two Brooklyn-based companies, L&M Manufacturing
and Nesco NY Inc., to buy the parts from companies in Connecticut and California.
In March, Israeli police raided a warehouse in the town of Binyamina, discovering
some of the equipment Kohn had shipped. An arms dealer, Eli Cohen, was
later arrested on suspicion of planning a sale to Iran.
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- Attorney Michael Sherman, who represents Kohn, said in
court that his client did not know the weapon components may have been
meant for Iran.
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- Kohn faces about four years in prison and $25,000 in
fines when he is sentenced March 4, according to a plea agreement with
prosecutors. Sherman is expected to ask for a reduced sentence but would
not say what he would propose.
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