An alleged leader from Japan’s Yakuza crime syndicates has pleaded guilty to trafficking nuclear materials from Myanmar as part of a global web of trades in drugs, weapons, and laundered cash, according to the US Department of Justice.
During an undercover investigation by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in 2021, the 60-year-old Japanese national, Takeshi Ebisawa, attempted to sell uranium and weapons-grade plutonium to someone he believed was an Iranian general interested in a nuclear weapons program.
Ebisawa pleaded guilty in a New York court to conspiring with a network of associates to traffic the nuclear materials out of Myanmar. He also admitted to international narcotics trafficking and weapons charges.
The indictment revealed that Ebisawa had connections with an insurgent group in Myanmar and facilitated the sale of nuclear material to fund weapons purchases. He was arrested on charges related to drug distribution in the US and attempting to buy American-made surface-to-air missiles.
Myanmar, rich in natural resources including uranium, has been a hotspot for transnational crime. Ebisawa's activities involved trafficking nuclear materials, drugs, and weapons across multiple countries.
DEA administrator Anne Milgram emphasized the agency's success in dismantling criminal networks, while Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen warned that those involved in trafficking dangerous materials on behalf of criminal syndicates will face severe consequences.
The Department of Justice highlighted that international trafficking of nuclear materials carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Ebisawa, identified as a Yakuza leader, faces accountability for his illicit activities.
