LOS ANGELES – Federal prosecutors announced that a 44-year-old woman from Los Angeles was arrested on Saturday night at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). She is suspected of playing a significant role in helping Iran traffic weapons to Sudan, a country currently engulfed in a devastating civil war that has lasted four years.
The woman, identified as Shamim Mafi, is facing serious charges for allegedly brokering the sale of military equipment, including drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition, between Iran and the Sudanese Armed Forces. This information was shared by U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli on social media.
As of now, there is no publicly available contact information for Mafi, and it is unclear if she has legal representation to comment on the situation. A photo shared by Essayli depicted an FBI agent escorting Mafi to a vehicle outside LAX.
Shamim Mafi is originally from Iran and became a lawful permanent resident in the United States in 2016. According to a criminal complaint filed on March 12, she and an unnamed co-conspirator operated a business in Oman called Atlas International Business, which was allegedly involved in trafficking weapons and ammunition. The company reportedly received over $7 million in payments for these activities in 2025.
In another troubling detail, Mafi and her co-conspirator are accused of facilitating the sale of 55,000 bomb fuses to the Sudanese Ministry of Defense. The complaint notes that Mafi even submitted a letter of intent to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to purchase these bomb fuses for Sudan.
Mafi is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Monday. If convicted, she could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The ongoing civil war in Sudan has led to a severe humanitarian crisis, resulting in dwindling food supplies and millions of people being displaced from their homes. This situation highlights the critical importance of addressing the flow of weapons and resources that fuel such conflicts.
