Yakuza Boss Admits Plot to Sell Nuclear Materials to Iran, Faces Life Sentence
A Japanese crime boss, Takeshi Ebisawa, 60, has pleaded guilty in a Manhattan federal court to a stunning array of charges, including conspiring to sell nuclear materials to Iran, along with drug and weapons trafficking, Al Jazeera reports.
The US Department of Justice announced the plea on Wednesday, revealing a complex international criminal enterprise. Ebisawa, a member of the Yakuza, faces a potential life sentence for his crimes. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 9.
The investigation, spearheaded by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), uncovered that Ebisawa sought to sell a substantial amount of thorium and uranium in 2020. According to prosecutors, he told an undercover DEA agent that he wanted to broker the sale of these materials to an associate posing as an Iranian general. Ebisawa later offered plutonium, which he described as even “better” than uranium for building nuclear weapons. Lab analysis reportedly confirmed that a powdery yellow substance presented by Ebisawa’s associates contained traces of uranium, thorium, and plutonium.
Beyond the nuclear conspiracy, Ebisawa also admitted to trafficking drugs and weapons. He plotted to purchase US-made surface-to-air missiles and other heavy weaponry for armed groups in Myanmar, planning to receive heroin and methamphetamine as partial payment.
US officials confirmed the cooperation of law enforcement in Indonesia, Japan, and Thailand in Ebisawa’s arrest and prosecution.
