Arrest of Yakuza Leader for Attempting to Smuggle Nuclear Materials to Iran

A Yakuza leader was arrested by the U.S. government on charges of attempting to smuggle nuclear materials to Iran.

The U.S. government announced the arrest of one of the leaders of Japan’s criminal organizations, known as “Yakuza,” who was attempting to smuggle uranium and plutonium from Myanmar to other countries, including Iran, and was charged by the U.S. prosecutor.

According to statements by U.S. federal authorities, “Takashi Abisawa” and his accomplice displayed samples of nuclear materials that had been transported from Myanmar to Thailand to one of the undercover agents of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration who had identified himself as a drug and weapons smuggler and claimed to be in contact with an Iranian general. The nuclear materials in question were confiscated and after relevant tests, it was determined that the uranium and plutonium had the required purity level for weapon production.

The U.S. prosecutor stated regarding this matter: “The nuclear materials were sent by one of the leaders of ethnic insurgent groups in Myanmar who had seized a uranium mine in the country. Abisawa had proposed to this Myanmar insurgent leader that he serve as a middleman in the sale of uranium so he could cover the cost of purchasing weapons from an Iranian general.”

According to documents in the court, the insurgent leader had prepared samples that were determined in one of the U.S. laboratories to contain uranium, thorium, and plutonium with the required purity level for weapon production. According to the U.S. prosecutor’s statements, the 60-year-old Abisawa is one of the leaders of an international criminal syndicate based in Japan who was arrested in a raid in Manhattan in April 2022 and has been awaiting trial ever since.

“Anne Milgram,” head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, issued a statement regarding the smuggling of nuclear materials saying: “As alleged, the defendants in this case engaged in smuggling drugs, weapons, and nuclear materials to the extent that they offered uranium and plutonium with the required purity level for weapon production to Iran, knowing that Iran would use it to manufacture nuclear weapons. This is a striking example of the corruption of drug smugglers who trade without regard for human life.”