April 10, 2007
David Robertson, Business Correspondent
British businessmen could find themselves in American jails after a crackdown by the US Department of Justice on trade with “rogue states”, leading lawyers say.
US officials are reaching across borders in an attempt to prevent companies doing business in countries such as Iran, even if people are obeying their own domestic laws.
Ali Manzarpour, a Brighton-based businessman, is in jail in Poland awaiting extradition to the United States, despite never having visited the country. He is charged with trying to export an experimental single-engine aircraft to Iran. This is not believed to have contravened any British or European law, but because the aircraft originated in the US, the Americans are claiming jurisdiction.