SANTA ANA, Calif. – Homeland Safety Investigations (HSI) particular brokers and legislation enforcement companions right now arrested an worker of a Division of Protection contractor on a legal grievance alleging he unlawfully offered United States Air Power technical knowledge to an Orange County man who then illegally resold the info to prospects.
Sarfraz Yousuf, 43, of Miramar, Florida, was taken into federal custody this morning. Additionally arrested right now was Marc Chavez, 53, of Trabuco Canyon.
Yousuf is anticipated to make his preliminary look in U.S. District Court docket in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Chavez is anticipated to look in federal courtroom in Santa Ana. Every man is charged with one depend of theft of presidency property.
This case is being investigated by HSI Los Angeles; the Naval Legal Investigative Service; the Division of Commerce, Bureau of Business and Safety, Workplace of Export Enforcement; U.S. Air Power Workplace of Particular Investigations; and U.S. Military Legal Investigation Command.
In keeping with an affidavit filed with the grievance, throughout an investigation right into a U.S. Navy worker’s unlawful sale of government-controlled technical drawings to a Newport Seaside-based firm, Newport Aeronautical Gross sales Corp. (NASC), legislation enforcement found NASC additionally illegally obtained U.S. Air Power technical orders from the customers of an e-mail account utilized by Yousuf, an worker of Summit Aerospace Inc., a Miami-based plane upkeep firm.
The technical orders at situation on this case are paperwork that cowl set up, operation, upkeep and dealing with of Air Power tools and materials.
Throughout the investigation, legislation enforcement additionally found Chavez illegally acquired Air Power technical orders from Yousuf on behalf of LTC Merchandise, a Trabuco Canyon-based firm promoting technical aerospace knowledge that Chavez ran out of his residence.
From January 2015 to July 2020, Chavez allegedly unlawfully acquired at the very least 1,875 Air Power technical orders from Yousuf in trade for at the very least $132,280. Yousuf was not licensed to promote the technical orders and Chavez was not licensed to obtain them.
In June 2020, Yousuf allegedly offered 34 Air Power technical orders to Chavez, together with one marked with a distribution assertion reserved for “technical knowledge of such army significance that launch…might jeopardize an vital technological or operational army benefit of america,” and containing overhaul directions associated to a “Charge Gyro Meeting Flight Management,” for $2,170. Chavez allegedly resold the orders to prospects for a revenue.
If convicted, the defendants would face a statutory most sentence of 10 years in federal jail.
In a associated case, Mark Becoming, 54, of Berlin, New Jersey, an engineer employed by the Navy at a facility in Philadelphia, pleaded responsible in December 2020, to 1 depend of conspiracy to steal authorities property and one depend of aiding and abetting the theft of presidency property. Becoming admitted in his plea settlement that he downloaded technical drawings and manuals associated to U.S. army weapons techniques and offered the objects to NASC, which later resold the paperwork to home and international prospects. Becoming’s sentencing listening to is scheduled for October 18, in Santa Ana.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Legal professional for the Central District of California’s Worldwide Narcotics, Cash Laundering, and Racketeering Part.
HSI is a directorate of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Division of Homeland Safety, chargeable for investigating transnational crime and threats, particularly these legal organizations that exploit the worldwide infrastructure by way of which worldwide commerce, journey and finance transfer. HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 staff consists of greater than 7,100 Particular Brokers assigned to 220 cities all through america, and 80 abroad areas in 53 international locations. HSI’s worldwide presence represents DHS’s largest investigative legislation enforcement presence overseas and one of many largest worldwide footprints in U.S. legislation enforcement.