The Treasury and State Departments have imposed sanctions on three Iranian intelligence officers accused of involvement in the abduction, detention, and presumed death of former FBI special agent Robert A. Levinson.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced Tuesday that the sanctions target three officials from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security: Reza Amiri Moghadam, Gholamhossein Mohammadnia, and Taqi Daneshvar.
Levinson, born 1948, was an American former DEA and FBI agent who vanished on March 9, 2007, on Iran’s Kish Island while on a mission for the CIA. To prevent a lawsuit from exposing details of his work in Iran and his arrangement with the CIA, Levinson’s family received a $2.5 million annuity from the agency.
Levinson is believed to have been held captive by the Iranian government, although Iran has never acknowledged his detention. According to his family, he suffered from type 1 diabetes, gout, and hypertension.
On March 25, 2020, Levinson’s family, on the advice of the US government, announced his presumed death. The exact date of his death remains unknown, but it is believed he died in Iranian custody. On December 14, 2020, the Treasury Department sanctioned two Iranian Ministry of Intelligence employees, Mohammad Baseri and Ahmad Khazai, in connection with his kidnapping.
“Iran’s treatment of Mr. Levinson remains a blight on Iran’s already grim record of human rights abuse,” Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said on Tuesday. “The Department of the Treasury will continue to work with US government partners to identify those responsible and shine a light on their abhorrent behavior.”
“Today’s action by our partners at the Department of the Treasury demonstrates that we continue to work together to identify additional Iranian officers involved in Bob’s abduction,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Our investigation continues—we will pursue all options to hold Iran accountable. The FBI will not waver in our commitment to provide answers to the Levinson family about what happened to Bob.”
As a result of Tuesday’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated individuals and entities that are within the United States, or in the possession or control of US persons, are blocked and must be reported to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Additionally, any entities that are 50% or more owned, directly or indirectly, by one or more blocked persons are also subject to blocking. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC or exempt, OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by US persons, or within or transiting the United States, that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons. US citizens may face civil or criminal penalties for violating these sanctions.
Furthermore, individuals or entities that engage in certain transactions with those designated today may themselves be exposed to sanctions or enforcement actions.
Non-US citizens are also prohibited from causing or conspiring to cause US citizens to knowingly or unknowingly violate US sanctions or from engaging in conduct intended to evade US sanctions.
