Thursday, January 18, 2007

Man admits scheme to ship military equipment overseas

Suspect pleads guilty in plot to smuggle missiles

Paul Egan / The Detroit News

An Indonesian man faces up to seven years and three months in prison after he pleaded guilty Thursday to participating in a foiled plot to illegally send missiles and other weapons to Indonesia.

Hadianto Djoko Djuliarso, 41, pleaded guilty in front of U.S. District Judge John Feikens to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and conspiracy to launder money.

He was the last of four businessmen charged in the case last year to plead guilty. A sentencing date has not been set.

Some of the negotiations connected with the arms deal in 2005 and 2006 took place in the Detroit area, according to court testimony.

The men did not seek and receive the required arms export permit from the U.S. government.

The weapons included more than $1 million worth of machine guns, rifles, and parts for radar and military aircraft, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a news release. The men also inquired about missiles and other weapons, the news release said.

Earlier, co-defendant David Beecroft, 44, of the United Kingdom was sentenced to eight months in prison in December after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy.

Ignatius Ferdinandus Soeharli, 49, of Indonesia, pleaded guilty to violating the Arms Export Control Act last week and faces up to 57 months in prison.

Ibrahim Bin Amran, 46, of Singapore, pleaded guilty to two conspiracy counts in December and faces up to 87 months in prison.

Prosecutors have not said whether it was the Indonesian military or someone else in Indonesia seeking the weapons.

"This case reveals the importance of keeping sensitive U.S. military components out of the wrong hands," said Brian Moskowitz, special agent in charge of the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Office of Investigations in Detroit.

The Department of Homeland Security and the Defense Department were also involved in the investigation.

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January 18, 2007

FREE PRESS STAFF

The final defendant in a scheme to export banned military aircraft equipment to Indonesia last year pleaded guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court in Detroit.

Hadianto Djoko Djuliarso, 42, pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate the Arms Export Control Act and money laundering during a 20-minute hearing before U.S. District Judge John Feikens.

Advertisement Under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office, he faces the prospects of 70 to 87 months in prison at sentencing in a few months. He is in custody.

Djuliarso and three other Asian businessmen were arrested last April after flying to Honolulu, Hawaii, to finalize plans for acquiring radar and other parts for military aircraft, handguns and submachine guns for the Indonesian government. Such items require a U.S. export license.

They were arrested by undercover federal agents from Detroit and Ohio posing as arms dealers. A man who played a minor role in the scheme was sentenced to time spent in custody and deported last month. The other two are facing prison terms ranging from 46 to 87 months in prison.

see also Arms Smuggling Arrests