Sentenced To Two Years Despite No Criminal History

A judge in West Palm Beach said he needed to send a message to anyone trying to work around trade sanctions against Iran when he sentenced 53-year-old airplane mechanic Diocenyr Ribamar Barbosa-Santos to two years in prison. The sentence came despite a recommendation from the prosecutor that Barbosa-Santos be sentenced only to probation and community service.

The mechanic, who has no prior criminal record, was charged with trying to undermine national security for attempting to secure financing to smuggle several civilian airliners to Iran through China ... a transaction reportedly worth $136.5 million, according to a report appearing in the south Florida Sun Sentinel. Prosecutor Michael Walleisa described Barbosa-Santos as a "hard working family man who just got greedy."

Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley disagreed. He said Barbosa-Santos was guilty of an "enormously serious offense." He said that the reason trade sanctions against Iran appear to be having some effect is because "people like Barbosa-Santos fail."

Barbosa-Santos had been working to facilitate the transfer of seven A300 airliners from China to Iran. His brokerage fee would have been in the neighborhood of $273,000.

As a result of his participation in the scheme, not only will he be spending two years in prison, but he was fired by American Airlines and will likely never work in aviation again. He has also lost his house to foreclosure.

FMI: www.flsd.uscourts.gov