A British aviation company has agreed to pay 15 million dollars in fines as part of a plea agreement to settle charges it illegally exported Boeing 747 aircraft to Iran, the US Justice Department said Friday. Balli Aviation Ltd pled guilty to the charges that it bought three Boeing 747s with financing from an Iranian airline and exported them to Iran between October 2005 and October 2008, the department said in a statement.
The company, a subsidiary of British-based Balli Group PLC, then leased the aircraft to the Iranian airline which used them for flights into and out of the country, the statement added. "As this case demonstrates, corporations that conduct business with Iran in violation of US export laws and sanctions face serious consequences," said David Kris, assistant attorney general for national security.
As part of the plea agreement, Balli agreed to pay a two million dollar criminal fine and be placed on corporate probation for five years. It must also pay a 15 million dollar civil penalty, of which two million will be suspended if there are no further export control violations, the Justice Department said.