(DES MOINES, IOWA) — Four relatives were charged in Iowa on Tuesday with conspiring to smuggle guns and ammunition to Lebanon that were hidden with equipment exports and supplies for Syrian refugees.
Federal agents intercepted cargo containers in March and again last week that were bound for Beirut carrying a total of 152 firearms and 16,000 rounds of ammunition, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday.
The suspects were identified as Ali Herz, 50 and his 22-year-old son, Adam Herz; Ali Herz’s younger brother, Bassem Herz, 29; and Bassam Herz’s wife, Al Sarah Zeaiter, 24. All four live in Cedar Rapids, where they were arrested Tuesday as local, state and federal officers executed search warrants in the city.
During initial court appearances Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Linda Reade ordered them jailed pending a detention hearing set for Friday.
“We believe there is immense risk to public safety,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Murphy.
The four said little in court, where they appeared in street clothes, their wrists handcuffed and legs shackled. Their attorneys declined to comment on the allegations following the hearing.
The complaint says the four came under suspicion as they stockpiled more than $100,000 worth of guns and ammunition legally purchased from dealers in eastern Iowa over the last 17 months. A gun store owner in February expressed concerns to authorities after the group twice purchased all of his store’s 5.7 millimeter ammunition. One of the men also requested accessories for military-style rifles after reviewing a text message written in a foreign language, the owner reported.
On Tuesday, agents searched a pizza shop linked to Bassem Herz; a Cedar Rapids address tied to Adam Herz; and Midamar Corp., a maker of halal foods whose shipping service the alleged conspirators used to transport the firearms.
No one with Midamar was charged in the alleged plot. Midamar attorney Michael Lahammer said company employees were unaware the weapons were in the containers and weren’t involved with packing them. He said a company named in the complaint, Herz Enterprises, contracted with Midamar to use its shipping facility, which is made available to other exporters.
Midamar was “used to facilitate this illegal activity by Herz Enterprises, if what the government says is true,” he said.
The firearms found in March were hidden inside of a container that had three skid loaders that were being exported and Midamar boxes marked “Syria” that were filled with clothing, shoes, honey and household supplies.
Midamar made arrangements to ship the container after its founder, Bill Aossey, promoted a clothing drive for Syrian refugees stranded in Lebanon, the complaint says. In an online posting seeking donations, Aossey wrote that the supplies would be added to an equipment container already scheduled for export.
After the container arrived by train at a seaport in Norfolk, Virginia, investigators found 53 guns and 6,800 rounds of ammunition during a March 26 inspection.
Last week, agents searched a container the suspects had brought to Midamar for shipment that had 99 firearms, over 9,500 rounds of ammunition and firearms parts and accessories that were hidden in skid loaders and inside suitcases and boxes that contained clothing.
The four suspects, who are in the United States legally, are not licensed to sell or export firearms, the complaint says. An earlier shipment wasn’t intercepted, and investigators cannot account for dozens of weapons they purchased.
The Herzes previously caught attention for their ties abroad.
Ali Herz, who was born in Lebanon, had $61,400 in cash on him when he returned to the U.S from overseas in December and has sent and received $160,000 in wire transfers over the last two years, the complaint says.
Adam Herz, a college student born in the United States, was questioned after returning to the U.S. in 2012 and 2014 from what he said were lengthy visits to Lebanon.
Bassem Herz, who was born in Kuwait, has made many trips abroad and previously exported other equipment to Lebanon. Zeaiter said she is a citizen of Lebanon who is a college student.
Reporting by The Associated Press.