NEW YORK — The alleged head of a criminal organization based in Japan has admitted guilt to charges related to a conspiracy aimed at trafficking uranium and plutonium from Myanmar, under the impression that these materials would be used by Iran for nuclear armament.
Takeshi Ebisawa, 60, entered his plea on Wednesday at a federal court in Manhattan, facing serious allegations of trafficking weapons and narcotics, which carry a minimum sentence of ten years and a potential life imprisonment. His sentencing hearing has been scheduled for April 9.
According to prosecutors, Ebisawa unknowingly engaged in communication during 2021 and 2022 with an undercover informant from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), as well as the informant’s accomplice who pretended to be an Iranian general. Ebisawa was detained in Manhattan in April 2022 as part of a DEA financial operation.
DEA Administrator Anne Milgram commented on the case, stating that the prosecution highlighted the DEA’s exceptional ability to disrupt some of the most hazardous criminal networks globally. She noted that the investigation unveiled disturbing realities of international organized crime, which include trafficking of nuclear substances, the drug trade, and the arming of dangerous insurgent groups.
Acting U.S. Attorney Edward Y. Kim shared that Ebisawa acknowledged in his plea that he “boldly trafficked nuclear material, including weapons-grade plutonium, sourced from Burma.” Furthermore, he sought to exchange large amounts of heroin and methamphetamine sent to the United States for advanced weaponry like surface-to-air missiles intended for conflict areas in Burma, according to Kim.
Court filings indicate that in 2020, Ebisawa informed the DEA’s informant of his access to substantial quantities of nuclear materials he aimed to sell. To substantiate his claims, he sent the informant images of rocky substances along with Geiger counters indicating radiation levels, asserting these materials comprised thorium and uranium.
Prosecutors revealed that the nuclear substances originated from an unspecified leader of an “ethnic insurgent group” in Myanmar, who had been extracting uranium. Ebisawa allegedly proposed that this leader sell uranium through him to finance the purchase of weaponry from the impostor general.
Samples of the purported nuclear materials were collected and analyzed by a U.S. federal laboratory, which confirmed the presence of uranium, thorium, and plutonium. It was determined that the “isotope composition of the plutonium” classified it as weapons-grade, indicating that the quantity was adequate for potential use in a nuclear weapon.
An inquiry regarding comments from Ebisawa’s legal representation was sent, but no response has been received.
