The Intricacies of Corruption in the Shamkhani Family
According to Iran Gate, the role of Hossein Shamkhani in major corruption cases has been so significant that some experts believe it is one of the reasons for Ali Shamkhani’s resignation from the position of Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
The involvement of Ali Shamkhani’s most famous son in these cases is so prominent that some claim a significant portion of the country’s oil exports during the sanctions were conducted by him.
In the first part of the investigation into the Shamkhani family’s corruption cases, key members of this family were introduced. This segment examines the role of Hossein Shamkhani, the most important player in this economic corruption case. The second and third segments will focus on Hossein’s role and his connections in exploiting the non-transparent sanctions environment.
The Admiral Unveiled Hossein Shamkhani
As mentioned in the first part of this case, Hossein Shamkhani is the eldest son of Ali Shamkhani and Azarmidokht Tabatabai. According to information released by journalist and political analyst Saeed Aganji and former Kayhan editor and conservative journalist Mehdi Nasiri, Hossein Shamkhani is one of the key players in circumventing sanctions.
Other sources have also released information in this regard, but generally, all sources refer to the Admiral ship case as the main key to revealing Hossein Shamkhani’s role in corruption cases. The Metropol Building disaster in Abadan is another turning point that led researchers in the field of corruption to identify other figures from the Shamkhani family. However, this segment focuses on the importance of the Admiral company and ship in the Shamkhani family’s economic corruption, as it is considered the golden key to solving the mystery of sanctions brokerage by Ali Shamkhani’s son.
What is the Admiral Story?
In February 2022, India’s Coast Guard reported the seizure of a container ship named Kabul in the port of Kandla on India’s west coast. Immediately after this news broke, it was revealed that the company that owned the seized ship was Admiral, belonging to Hossein and Hassan Shamkhani, sons of Ali Shamkhani. This news received widespread coverage in domestic media, but the Shamkhani family sued the ILNA news agency for publishing this news. But what was the reality, and what happened to the Admiral?
According to available information, Admiral Company was established in 2011 and was active in providing maritime transport services until last year. Evidence published by media sources indicates the significant role of this company in circumventing sanctions. However, according to information on the Marine Traffic website, the Kabul container ship, owned by Admiral, operated under the flag of the African Republic of Liberia, but evidence suggests the company’s central role in illegal and unofficial Iranian oil exports.
Although after this revelation, the Shamkhani family quickly dissolved Admiral Company, an event that should not have happened occurred, providing the media with a golden key to illuminate the Shamkhani family’s role in economic corruption cases.
Iranian journalist Yashar Soltani also tweeted on this topic, accusing Ali Shamkhani and his children of exploiting U.S. sanctions after the United States withdrew from the JCPOA. He also questioned Ali Shamkhani on his Twitter account about the number of oil tankers Hossein Shamkhani owns.
But information obtained by Iran Gate indicates the dissolution of Admiral Company by its CEO, Hossein Shamkhani. This action was to neutralize the Indian court’s legal claim, which had found the Kabul container ship’s documents and its crew contradictory.
From Admiral to Mansouron
As mentioned, the seizure of the ship belonging to Admiral Company was a key indicator of the Shamkhani family’s role in circumventing oil sanctions. Gradually, some journalists revealed Hossein Shamkhani’s connections with mafia circles in the country’s oil and petrochemical industry, the most important of which was his collaboration with Ehsan Tahiri.
Ehsan Tahiri is the son of Commander Ali Tahiri from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. There are also documents of Shamsali Tahiri’s collaboration and friendship with Ali Shamkhani before the revolution. For example, Shamsali Tahiri was a member of the Saf group, which collaborated with the Mansouron group. It is worth noting that Ali Shamkhani was also one of the main members of Mansouron in the years before the 1979 revolution.
The Birth of a Sultan
After the revolution and the establishment of the Islamic Republic, Shamsali Tahiri and Ali Shamkhani joined the Revolutionary Guard. However, later Commander Tahiri established Tahiri and Partners Exchange, which played a crucial role in currency exchanges related to the export of petrochemical products. This exchange later changed its name to Iran Exchange and is known by this name.
This role became much more prominent from 2013 to 2022, as sanctions imposed on Iran’s oil industries led the Islamic Republic to seek ways to circumvent the sanctions, and exchanges trusted by the authorities became more significant than ever.
This situation turned Commander Ali Tahiri’s exchange into one of the sultans of the country’s petrochemical industry. In other words, oil sanctions led an exchange belonging to a Revolutionary Guard commander to become the main channel for the country’s oil exports. This event facilitated exploitation of this non-transparent environment, adding another sultan to the dozens of corrupt sultans in Iran’s rentier economy.
The Golden Pair: Hossein and Ehsan
Just as Hossein Shamkhani is the most prominent figure in the Shamkhani family in circumventing sanctions, Ehsan Tahiri, son of Commander Ali Tahiri, also plays a central role in transferring currency from illegal and unofficial petrochemical exports to the country. According to information released by Iranian journalist Saeed Aganji and considering Ali Shamkhani’s friendship with Ehsan Tahiri’s father, it has been revealed that Hossein Shamkhani and Ehsan have formed a powerful network in circumventing oil sanctions.
In fact, Hossein was responsible for selling oil to Iran’s unofficial customers, and Ehsan, using his father’s currency channel, aimed to transfer the currency back to the country. The death of Commander Tahiri in April 2020 and Ali Shamkhani’s sensitive position as Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council have also played a role in strengthening the connection between Hossein Shamkhani and Ehsan Tahiri.
Ehsan and the Money Laundering Saga
In February 2023, Saeed Aganji tweeted about Ehsan Tahiri’s release on a bail of 2,500 billion tomans in several oil and petrochemical corruption cases. In this tweet, he revealed Ehsan’s trips to Dubai for money laundering with the support of the Revolutionary Guard’s intelligence. Some sources also report Ali Shamkhani’s influence, then Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, in freeing Ehsan from prison.
In February 2023, the Iran Gate news site revealed Ehsan Tahiri’s active role in the Maroon, Pasargad, Arvand, and PCCI oil cases. In the same report, Ehsan Tahiri and Iran Exchange are mentioned as one of the main rings of oil and financial transfers for the Quds Force.
In the third part of this case, other corruption rings in unofficial oil exports and their connections with Hossein Shamkhani and subsequently the Shamkhani family will be unveiled.
The special Shamkhani case has been exclusively reviewed and written by Iran Gate. You can read other sections of this article from the links below.
- The Intricacies of Corruption in the Shamkhani Family Part One
- The Shamkhani Family’s Corruptions Under the Protection of the Supreme National Security Council Part Two You are currently reading this section
- The Intricacies of Corruption in the Shamkhani Family Part Three
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