Trump Treasury Sanctions Iranian Petroleum Magnate

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday announced that the Department sanctioned Seyed Asadoollah Emamjomeh and his corporate network, stating that he and his network sought to evade American sanctions.

“Emamjomeh and his network sought to export thousands of shipments of LPG—including from the United States—to evade U.S. sanctions and generate revenue for Iran,” Bessent said in a written statement. “The United States remains committed to holding accountable those who seek to provide the Iranian regime with the funding it needs to further its destabilizing activities in the region and around the world.”

The Treasury Department explained in a press release:

Emamjomeh’s expansive network includes a vessel, the TINOS I, which intended but failed to load cargo in 2024 off the coast of Houston, Texas. In addition to crude oil, LPG continues to be a major source of revenue for the Iranian regime, the proceeds of which fund Iran’s nuclear and advanced conventional weapons programs, as well as regional proxy groups and partners such as Hizballah, the Houthis, and Hamas.

“This action is in furtherance of Treasury’s implementation of National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 (NSPM-2), instituting a campaign of maximum economic pressure on Iran,” the press release continued.

The Treasury Department explained more about the Iranian liquified petroleum gas network

For more than a decade, Iran-based Seyed Asadoollah Emamjomeh (Emamjomeh) and his son, United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based British and Iranian national Meisam Emamjomeh (Meisam), have owned and operated an LPG sales, transportation, and delivery network using multiple Iran and UAE-based companies. Emamjomeh and his UAE-based company, Caspian Petrochemical FZE (Caspian Petrochemical) are part of a network that has exported thousands of shipments of LPG from Iran to Pakistan and have conducted tens of millions of dollars in business on behalf of Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industry Commercial Co. (PGPICC).

OFAC designated Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industry Commercial Co. (PGPICC) pursuant to E.O. 13382, a counterproliferation authority, on July 7, 2019, for being owned or controlled by Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (PGPIC). PGPIC was itself designated pursuant to E.O. 13382 that same day for having provided financial support to Khatam al-Anbiya, the engineering conglomerate of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

These sanctions follow the Trump administration placing sanctions on four individuals tied to the La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM), a Mexican cartel linked to fentanyl and human trafficking.

Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on X @SeanMoran3.