Posted on 12/16/2008 6:37:10 PM PST by Cindy
Three men indicted in scheme to illegally export night vision goggles to Vietnam
Defendants ran export business out of Orange County home
SANTA ANA, Calif. - Three men who operated an export business out of a Huntington Beach, Calif., residence face federal charges today for their role in a scheme to illegally export at least 55 state-of-the-art night vision goggles to Vietnam in violation of the Arms Export Control Act.
The three men, all of Vietnamese descent, are named in a five-count indictment filed in federal court here earlier this month. Dan Tran Dang, 62, of Santa Ana, Calif.; Liem Duc Huynh, 49, now residing in Broken Arrow, Okla.; and George Ngoc Bui, 49, believed to be in Vietnam; are accused of conspiring to illegally ship Generation 3 Night Vision Goggles manufactured by ITT Industries to Vietnam. Because the goggles are classified as a "defense article" on the United States Munitions List, written permission must be obtained from the U.S. Department of State in order to legally export them.
The charges against the men stem from an undercover investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) and the U.S. Department of Commerce. The case is being prosecuted by the United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California.
(Excerpt) Read more at ice.gov ...
Gotta ask....
A question not answered is who is/was the intended recipient of these NVG’s?
I think the answer to this question might be of interest.
Hell, I just bought night vision goggles for 79 bucks on Amazon. Haven’t tried them yet...
The just couldn’t wait for Obama to take the oath of office...
Btw, Instapundit clued me into them. Hardly a site that would undermine our security.
the crap that they sell cheap at Walmart and ITT gen 3’s
are two different critters
I will be watching various sites for follow-up.
got it from amazon. pretty sure the cia is not concerned.
Thats great. So the Russians and Chinese have them by now.
I can’t see old Charles using the night vision goggles for anything more sinister than rustling water buffalo at night.
>>>>A question not answered is who is/was the intended recipient of these NVG’s?<<<<<<
Vietnam’s annual per capita income is $1,000, and night vision goggles go for $3,000 to $5,000 USD.
We can safely bet they were selling to the VN military.
Also Vietnam’s Purchase Power Parity makes that $3,000 price tag equal to about $15,000 to $20,000 in the USA.
$3,000 is A LOT of money in VN.
>>>the crap that they sell cheap at Walmart and ITT gen 3’s
are two different critters<<<<<<
Gen3 is patented by ITT and is primo gear and not cheap.
Military and law enforcement grade stuff. $3,000 to $8,000 a pop.
“We can safely bet they were selling to the VN military.”
Personally, I’d guess it was a “blind” buyer obtaining the mdse. to move to another buyer in some other country, e.g., one of the Stans.
Already had it.
ITT was fined $100 million last year for passing this technology to foreign countries.
Seems like a lot of foreigners who come here to work in our defense/tech industries remain loyal to their countries or origin, for some reason.
>>>>>Personally, I’d guess it was a “blind” buyer obtaining the mdse. <<<<<
With all due respect, Vietnam is a bit of a police state and would not be the ideal place for that kind of third-party transaction.
There are many other countries more suitable.
I’ve spent bau khu time in VN. Anyone connected with the government could do a “blind” purchase and rake off a nice piece of the action. Just imagine the number of crooks working in the People’s Building at the end of Nguyen Hue near the Rex.
That is what makes it the IDEAL place for such a 3rd party transaction. Lots and lots of control.
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