Takeshi Ebisawa, a member of the Japanese yakuza criminal organisation has been charged by the United States for trafficking nuclear material obtained from Myanmar and selling it to fund an illegal arms deal.
‘Ebisawa, a yakuza leader, and his co-defendant Somphop Singhasiri, were previously charged with drug trafficking and firearms offences in April 2022’, according to AFP.
The charge filed in a Manhattan court alleges that Ebisawa conspired to “to sell weapons grade nuclear material and lethal narcotics from Burma (Myanmar), and to purchase military weaponry on behalf of an armed insurgent group”.
“It is chilling to imagine the results had these efforts succeeded and the Justice Department will hold responsible those who traffic in these materials and threaten US national security and international stability,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
Prosecutors have also accused Ebisawa of trafficking “uranium and weapons-grade plutonium from Burma to other countries”.
“He did so believing that the material was going to be used in the development of a nuclear weapons program, and while also negotiating for the purchase of deadly weapons. It is impossible to overstate the seriousness of this conduct,” said US Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York.
In a sting operation involving undercover agents, Thai authorities helped US investigators grab substances described as “yellowcake,” which contained weapons-grade plutonium. Ebisawa claimed to have access to large quantities of nuclear materials for sale and provided proof to support his claims.
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