US Air Force Colonel (Retired) Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Ship AK-47s to Somalia !!
FROM A
DIFFERENT POINT OF VIEW by Monte Friesner
~~ Financial Crime Consultant for WANTED SA ~~
~~~Monday October 11, 2010
< < WANTED SA late last night was informed that a retired US Air Force Colonel charged before the First Gulf War with attempting to deliver several C-130 transports and Stinger missiles to Iran in a case which is related to Iran -Contra* will be sentenced in US District Court** for seeking to ship 700 AK-47 assault rifles to Somalia.
Joseph O'Toole has admitted in court documents that he presented a forged certificate that misrepresented the end user of the rifles to be Chad, but intended to divert the shipment to Somalia instead.
Chanoch Miller who is an Israeli National was also charged, and will also be sentenced on December 14, 2010. Their plans to acquire and ship the weapons through the Republic of Panama which resulted in the expose of their plans and their arrests when they sought to engage a former felon residing in Panama to arrange for air transport who was cooperating with US Law Enforcement for several years.
The charged were also attempting to launder the large sums of money through Panama utilizing several banks that are under investigation at present.
The Defendants were originally charged with:
- Money Laundering Conspiracy and Money Laundering.
- Conspiracy to Export Defense Articles without a License.
- Engaging in the Business of Brokering Activities of Defense Articles without a License
They have pleaded guilty to a single conspiracy count.
It was not known who was the intended recipient, as Banderol the town in Somalia where they specified delivery was to be made is completely fictional and does not exist; however, it was learned that local affiliates of Al-Qaeda are the likely suspects.
* The case was later curiously dismissed by Federal prosecutors, after the First Gulf War broke out. The government alleged that there were credibility issues regarding two US Customs inspectors, the former felon and the ongoing Iran-Contra scandal.
** United States vs. O'Toole, Case No.: 10-CR-60177, COHN (SD FL)
The facts and opinions stated in this article are those of the author and not those of WANTED SA. WANTED SA does not warrant the accuracy of any facts and opinions stated in this article; does not endorse them, and accepts no responsibility for them.
