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Three men indicted in scheme to illegally export night vision goggles to Vietnam
ICE.gov ^ | December 16, 2008 | ICE.gov

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 ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bui; california; dang; goggles; huntingtonbeach; huynh; nightvisiongoggles; vietnam; vietnamesedescent

1 posted on 12/16/2008 6:37:12 PM PST by Cindy
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To: Cindy
Loral > China > Clinton campaign donation.
Professional Security > Viet Nam > Obama campaign donation?

Gotta ask....

2 posted on 12/16/2008 6:51:36 PM PST by SERKIT ("Blazing Saddles" explains it all.....)
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To: Cindy

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.


3 posted on 12/16/2008 6:52:21 PM PST by Tainan (Talk is cheap. Silence is golden. All I got is brass...lotsa brass.)
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To: SERKIT

Hell, I just bought night vision goggles for 79 bucks on Amazon. Haven’t tried them yet...


4 posted on 12/16/2008 6:53:32 PM PST by CaptRon (Perdicaris alive or Raisuli dead)
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To: Cindy

The just couldn’t wait for Obama to take the oath of office...


5 posted on 12/16/2008 6:54:24 PM PST by OrioleFan (Republicans believe every day is the 4th of July, democrats believe every day is April 15)
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To: CaptRon
Yeah, but they're not supposed to leave the country.
6 posted on 12/16/2008 6:57:09 PM PST by Ghost of Philip Marlowe (Abortion has become little more than the New Left's execution of political prisoners.)
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To: Ghost of Philip Marlowe
Yeah but they ain't military grade either. Figure I'll use them them to get to the head at the marina and back to my boat next summer.

Btw, Instapundit clued me into them. Hardly a site that would undermine our security.

7 posted on 12/16/2008 7:17:51 PM PST by CaptRon (Perdicaris alive or Raisuli dead)
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To: CaptRon

the crap that they sell cheap at Walmart and ITT gen 3’s
are two different critters


8 posted on 12/16/2008 7:28:23 PM PST by LeoWindhorse
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To: Tainan

I will be watching various sites for follow-up.


9 posted on 12/16/2008 7:30:12 PM PST by Cindy
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To: LeoWindhorse

got it from amazon. pretty sure the cia is not concerned.


10 posted on 12/16/2008 7:34:12 PM PST by CaptRon (Perdicaris alive or Raisuli dead)
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To: Cindy
Yeah. There may be some further info on this in some of the Viet newspapers or Viet sites. Problem is many, most, are in Viet Namese and my Viet is beau coup rusty reading-wise.
This might be more than it appears at first. But who knows?
11 posted on 12/16/2008 7:35:37 PM PST by Tainan (Talk is cheap. Silence is golden. All I got is brass...lotsa brass.)
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To: Cindy

Thats great. So the Russians and Chinese have them by now.


12 posted on 12/16/2008 7:41:40 PM PST by rahbert
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To: Cindy

I can’t see old Charles using the night vision goggles for anything more sinister than rustling water buffalo at night.


13 posted on 12/16/2008 7:51:46 PM PST by Thrownatbirth (.....Iraq Invasion fan since '91.)
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To: Tainan

>>>>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.


14 posted on 12/16/2008 8:35:45 PM PST by angkor (Conservatism is not a religious movement.)
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To: LeoWindhorse; CaptRon; SERKIT

>>>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.


15 posted on 12/16/2008 8:39:48 PM PST by angkor (Conservatism is not a religious movement.)
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To: angkor

“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.


16 posted on 12/16/2008 8:54:19 PM PST by Rembrandt
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To: rahbert
Thats great. So the Russians and Chinese have them by now.

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.

17 posted on 12/17/2008 5:20:12 AM PST by LIBERTARIAN JOE (Don't blame me - I voted for Ron Paul!)
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To: Rembrandt

>>>>>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.


18 posted on 12/17/2008 9:09:36 AM PST by angkor (Conservatism is not a religious movement.)
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To: angkor

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.


19 posted on 12/17/2008 8:39:44 PM PST by Rembrandt
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