Payment24

Seyed Sajjad Shahidian was sentenced to 23 months in prison for his role in conducting financial transactions in violation of U.S. sanctions against Iran. Shahidian lied to U.S. suppliers, illegally transferred funds from Iran, used fraudulent passports and ids, and established a business whose entire purpose was to circumvent U.S. sanctions and to enable others to do the same. Mr. Shahidian was the founder and CEO of a financial services firm that employed fraudulent tactics designed to circumvent United States sanctions lawfully imposed on the Government of Iran.

According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, PAYMENT24 was an internet-based financial services company with approximately 40 employees and offices in Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan, Iran. The primary business of PAYMENT24 was helping Iranian citizens conduct prohibited financial transactions with businesses based in the United States, including the unlawful purchase and exportation of computer software, software licenses, and computer servers from United States companies. According to PAYMENT24’s website, the company charged a fee to circumvent “American sanctions,” and claimed to have brought in millions of dollars of foreign currency into Iran.