Swiss court: Czech man guilty over exports to Iran

The Associated Press, Bellinzona, Switzerland, 27 March 2009 – A Swiss court on Thursday found a Czech man guilty of breaking export laws by selling technology to Iran that could be used for missile-building.
The Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona sentenced the unidentified 61-year-old man to pay a fine and court costs totaling 5,000 Swiss francs ($4,440). It also ordered some 26,500 francs in profits seized.
Prosecutors said the man exported electronic components in 2004-06 to companies in Malaysia and Hong Kong that are known to procure goods for Iran’s armament program.
The man failed to declare the exports to Swiss authorities as he had been ordered to do in August 2004, prosecutors said. He told the court that he chose not to declare the goods because he assumed they were harmless.
Swiss firms have come under scrutiny in the past for selling sensitive goods to Iran.