Action Identifies Front Company
and Vessels Attempting to Obscure Iranian Oil Deals Using Ship-to-Ship
Transfers and Designates Iranian Bank
WASHINGTON – The U.S.
Department of the Treasury is taking a number of actions today against Iranian
attempts to circumvent international financial sanctions. As part of the Treasury Department’s
continuing vigilance against Iran’s efforts to use front companies and
deceptive business practices to sell their oil on the international market,
today Treasury identified Sambouk Shipping FZC as subject to sanctions under Executive
Order (E.O.) 13599, which, among other things, targets the Government of Iran
(GOI) and persons acting for or on behalf of the GOI. Sambouk Shipping is tied to Dr. Dimitris
Cambis who, along with a network of front companies, were sanctioned in March 2013
under E.O. 13599 and the Iran Threat Reduction Act and Syria Human Rights Act
of 2012 (TRA) after the U.S. government uncovered Dr. Cambis’s scheme to evade
international oil sanctions against Iran.
In an attempt to continue his scheme, Dr. Cambis is using the recently
formed Sambouk Shipping to manage eight of the vessels that he operates on
behalf of the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC). These vessels have been used to execute
ship-to-ship transfers of Iranian oil in the Persian Gulf. These transfers are intended to facilitate deceptive
sales of Iranian oil by obscuring the origin of that oil.
Today, the Treasury Department also imposed sanctions
against Iranian Venezuelan Bi-National Bank (IVBB). IVBB was designated pursuant to E.O. 13382,
which targets proliferators of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their
supporters, for engaging in financial transactions on behalf of the previously
sanctioned Export Development Bank of Iran (EDBI).
“As Iran becomes increasingly isolated from the
international financial system and energy markets, it is turning increasingly to
convoluted schemes and shady actors to maintain its access to the global
financial system,” said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial
Intelligence David S. Cohen. “As long as
Iran tries to evade our sanctions, we will continue to expose their deceptive
maneuvers.”
Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is also updating
its list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN List)
entries today for eight vessels blocked due to the interest of National Iranian
Tanker Company in the vessels. Since
their original identification these vessels have been renamed and/or reflagged.
Treasury is also identifying eight
previously unidentified vessels as blocked property in which NITC has an
interest. Including today’s additions,
Treasury has identified 64 vessels as blocked property in which NITC has an
interest.
U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any
transactions with the entities listed today, and any assets those entities may
have subject to U.S. jurisdiction are frozen.
The Iranian
Venezuelan Bi-National Bank
The Iranian Venezuelan Bi-National Bank (IVBB) is being
designated pursuant to E.O. 13382 for its activities on behalf of EDBI. EDBI was designated under E.O. 13382 on
October 22, 2008, for providing financial services to Iran’s Ministry of
Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL).
IVBB has been processing funds transfers on behalf of EDBI
since at least January 2012. EDBI has
used IVBB to act as a proxy to fund export activities and to transfer millions
of dollars worth of funds from China’s Bank of Kunlun to EDBI. Additionally, senior EDBI staff is entitled
to authorize transaction instructions to Bank of Kunlun on behalf of IVBB.
Bank of Kunlun was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury
Department under Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment
Act of 2010 (CISADA) on July 31, 2012, for providing financial services to more
than six Iranian banks that were designated by the U.S. in connection with Iran’s
WMD programs or its support for international terrorism. Prior to the sanctions imposed against it
under the CISADA, Bank of Kunlun was engaged in a significant amount of direct
of business with EDBI, handling the equivalent of tens of millions of dollars
worth of funds for EDBI.
IVBB was originally established as a joint venture between
Iran and Venezuela, and EDBI was the Iranian party tasked with creating the
joint venture with Venezuela. However,
there is no evidence Venezuela retains any ties to this bank.
Identifying
Information
Name: Iranian-Venezuelan
Bi-National Bank
Address: Tosee
Building Ground Floor, Bokharest Street 44-46, Tehran, Iran
SWIFT/BIC: IVBBIRT1
Name: Sambouk
Shipping FZC
Address: FITCO
Building No. 3, Office 101, 1st Floor, P.O. Box 50044, Fujairah, United Arab
Emirates
Alternate Address:
Office 1202, Crystal Plaza, PO Box 50044, Buhaira Corniche, Sharjah,
United Arab Emirates
Newly-Identified
Vessels:
Name: Atlantis
Vessel Type: Crude
Oil Tanker
Flag: Tanzania
IMO Number: 9569621
Name: Badr
Vessel Type: Utility Vessel
Flag: Iran
IMO Number: 8407345
Name: Demos
Vessel Type: Crude
Oil Tanker
Flag: Tanzania
IMO Number: 9569683
Name: Infinity
Vessel Type: Crude
Oil Tanker
Flag: Tanzania
IMO Number: 9569671
Name: Justice
Vessel Type: Crude Oil Tanker
Flag: None Identified
IMO Number: 9357729
Name: Sunrise
Vessel Type: LPG
Tanker
Flag: None
Identified
IMO Number: 9615092
Name: Skyline
Vessel Type: Crude
Oil Tanker
Flag: Tanzania
IMO Number: 9569669
Name: Younes
Vessel Type: Platform Supply Ship
Flag: Iran
IMO Number: 8212465
Previously-Identified
Vessels:
To view a list of the updated vessel names and flagging
click here.
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