Rana Zeeshan Tanveer Pleads Guilty to Export Fraud, Beckley WV, 2023

Rana Zeeshan Tanveer, a 42-year-old resident of Beckley, West Virginia, has pleaded guilty to a federal felony offense of committing an export fraud violation, according to a recent indictment.

Between 2014 and 2018, Tanveer knowingly submitted false export valuations for technology items he shipped to Pakistan, including two high-technology items purchased for over $4,000 in June 2017. The items were undervalued on invoices at less than $200, a clear violation of U.S. export control laws.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division stated, ‘Mr. Tanveer pleaded guilty to unlawfully shipping high-technology devices overseas and is now being held accountable… The Department of Justice is steadfast in its commitment to prosecute those who would undermine our nation’s security and economic interest by flouting U.S. export control laws.’

U.S. Attorney Will Thompson for the Southern District of West Virginia added, ‘Violating export control requirements is a serious offense… Our office is committed to working closely with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable those who evade U.S. export laws.’

Acting Special Agent in Charge Scott Anderson of the Office of Export Enforcement Washington Field Office emphasized, ‘Knowingly undervaluing shipments in order to avoid export reporting requirements is a violation of U.S. export control rules… The Office of Export Enforcement will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prevent and disrupt illicit trade that threatens U.S. national security and undermines U.S. foreign policy.’

Tanveer is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 4, facing a maximum penalty of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

The Office of Export Enforcement and the FBI investigated the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Erik S. Goes for the Southern District of West Virginia and Trial Attorney R. Elizabeth Abraham of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuting the case.

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