Universal Bizargo: Man Tries to Ship Weapons to Lebanon in Car Parts
Universal Bizargo is back with another strange story in the world of international shipping. This one involves a bit of intrigue.
Sam Rafic Ghanem was arrested on Saturday in an FBI sting on Saturday, according to a UPI article. It seems Ghanem was trying to ship weapons to Lebanon.
Ghanem is 43 and lives in Springfield, VA. He owns an international shipping company with offices in the suburbs of Washington D.C. Of course, I imagine his international shipping business is in serious jeopardy now.
According to the UPI article, Ghanem and a former employee devised a scheme of hiding weapons in automobile parts that Ghanem’s shipping company would be sending to Lebanon. Unfortunately for Ghanem, the former employee who was in on the scheme was also an informant for the FBI.
The article says, “An FBI agent alleged in the charging documents the two men packed the car parts with 10 handguns, 10 semi-automatic weapons, and 18 ‘optical devices.'”
It goes on to state that Ghanem has been charged with one count of attempted export of defense articles, in violation of the Arms Export Control act and has allegedly admitted to the FBI that his intended shipment was in violation of U.S. law.
In case you were not aware, shipping weapons to Lebanon is a big no-no, even if you are carefully concealing them inside car parts.
Also, if you’re concealing weapons inside of car parts to be exported to Lebanon, it’s probably a good idea to make sure your partner in crime is not an FBI informant.
At Universal Cargo Management, we’re happy to help you with your international shipping, but if you’re looking to ship weapons around the world, you should look for a different freight forwarder or international shipping company. I would suggest Ghanem’s international shipping company, but it doesn’t look like he’s going to be much help to you at this point.
Actually, if you’re thinking of shipping weapons to Lebanon, or some other volatile location in the Middle East or around the world, might we make an alternative suggestion.
Instead of guns, you could ship playground equipment like Maximizing Children’s Ministries International does, shipping joy to children with their Project Playground program. I know guns would bring child-like smiles to the faces of under-armed militants, but wouldn’t you rather see actual children smile?
If not, Universal Cargo Management is probably not the freight forwarder for you.
However, if you’re interested in legally importing or exporting goods around the world, Universal Cargo Management is exactly the company you’re looking for. We’re ready to give you freight rate pricing for your shipments at any time and give you excellent service on your import and export needs.
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