Green card holder held at US airport over Iran-linked arms trafficking charges

A 44-year-old Iranian national and US green card holder has been arrested at Los Angeles International Airport on charges of brokering weapons deals linked to Iran and Sudan, and is expected to be produced before a federal court, according to officials.

In a post on X, First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli said Shamim Mafi was arrested “for trafficking arms on behalf of the government of Iran” and is scheduled to appear in a US District Court in Los Angeles.

“She is charged with a violation of 50 U.S.C. SS 1705 for brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured by Iran and sold to Sudan,” Essayli said.


Mafi, a resident of Woodland Hills, became a lawful permanent resident of the United States in 2016. If convicted, she could face up to 20 years in federal prison.

Alleged weapons deals and network

According to officials and court documents, one of the deals involved a contract worth over $70 million for Iranian-made Mohajer-6 armed drones supplied by Iran’s Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics.

According to a report by the Los Angeles Times said Mafi was arrested at the airport while preparing to board a flight to Turkey.

Federal authorities allege that she worked with Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security and used an Omani shell company to facilitate movement of weapons and funds between Iran and its proxies.

Investigation and charges

According to a criminal complaint filed in a federal court in Los Angeles, Mafi maintained contacts with Iranian officials between December 2022 and June 2025.

The complaint also alleges that she used her connections to resolve personal matters, including an inheritance dispute and her son’s military service obligations.

“In July of 2024, as fighting raged in Khartoum, a Sudanese weapons broker WhatsApped Mafi to contract a shipment of Qods Mohajer-6 drones -- the same ones Iran has long supplied Russia in its war in Ukraine, according to the complaint. At least some of the weapons Mafi sold to the military arrived in Sudan from China,” the Los Angeles Times report said.