Tehran, Karafarinane Eghtesad – The United States has sentenced a 71-year-old business owner from Alabama to five years in prison for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran.

Ray Hunt of Owens Cross Roads, Alabama, was sentenced to five years in federal prison on Tuesday for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act by exporting goods to the Islamic Republic.

Hunt, also known as Abdolrahman Hantoosh, pleaded guilty in July 2024 to sending U.S.-origin industrial equipment to Iran in violation of the illegal U.S. trade sanctions targeting the country’s economy.

The U.S. Justice Department claimed in a statement on Tuesday that he had worked with two Iranian companies located in Tehran, Iran, to send industrial equipment for use in Iran’s oil, gas, and petrochemical industries.

“Hunt engaged in a series of deceptive practices to avoid detection by U.S. authorities, including using third-party transshipment companies in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and routing payments through UAE banks, as well as lying to shipping companies about the value of his exports to prevent the filing of Electronic Export Information to U.S. authorities,” the statement read.

The sentencing comes a day after the U.S. imposed a fresh round of sanctions targeting some Iranian oil vessels, as well as certain legal or natural persons under the pretext of being involved in selling and transporting Iranian petroleum.

In reaction to the move, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esma’eel Baqayi said on Wednesday that every country has the right to decide on its economic and trade interactions with other countries.

Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump restored his “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, which administration officials say includes efforts to bring the country’s oil exports down to zero.

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