Evergreen Reporter

Abouzar Rahmati, a 42-year-old former contractor for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) based in Great Falls, Virginia, has admitted guilt in acting as an undisclosed agent for the Iranian government within the United States. Rahmati, a naturalized U.S. citizen, faces severe legal consequences including a potential decade-long prison sentence for operating as an undisclosed foreign agent and up to five years for conspiracy.

U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., along with Supervisory Official Sue Bai from the Justice Department’s National Security Division and FBI Assistant Director Steven J. Jensen, disclosed the details of the case. Rahmati is scheduled for sentencing on August 26, 2025.

Court records reveal Rahmati cooperated with Iranian state officials and intelligence personnel in various activities, ranging from meetings in Iran to secretly gathering sensitive information. These activities involved exploiting his position to access non-public aviation sector data and materials from the U.S. solar energy industry, subsequently handing this information to Iranian officers.

"The brazen acts of this defendant – acting against the United States while on U.S. soil – is a clear example of how our enemies are willing to take risks in order to do us harm," commented U.S. Attorney Martin. He emphasized the importance of safeguarding critical infrastructure information from adversaries, praising the prosecutorial team for securing Rahmati's guilty plea, which he believes will enhance national safety.

Assistant Director Jensen reiterated the FBI's strict stance against the Iranian government's assaults on U.S. security, labeling Rahmati’s guilty plea as a testament to this policy. He stressed that individuals with access to critical U.S. technology, particularly in the aviation industry, are prime targets for Iranian intelligence services.

After initially offering his services in August 2017 to an Iranian official with whom he shared academic ties, Rahmati traveled to Iran in December 2017 to meet intelligence operatives and officials. There, he agreed to procure and share information on the U.S. solar energy sector under the guise of academic research discussions.

Upon returning to the U.S., Rahmati began retrieving relevant materials and shared them with an Iranian government office. Utilizing his contractor role at U.S. COMPANY 1, he accessed over 172 GB of sensitive files, including vital FAA documents, which he later transferred to Iran in April 2022. Further data relating to solar energy and U.S. airport operations was sent to his brother in Iran for transfer to Iranian intelligence.

The investigation, led by the FBI’s Washington Field Office with assistance from the FAA’s Office of Counterintelligence, progressed under the leadership of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Tortorice and Kimberly Paschall, as well as Trial Attorneys Beau Barnes and Alexander Wharton from the National Security Division.