An Edmond man has admitted he shipped firearms hidden with tool parts to a Kurdish military organization in Iraq, the FBI said.
Randy Lew Williams, 57, was charged Tuesday in Oklahoma City federal court with smuggling, conspiracy and two other offenses.
The apartment complex maintenance worker was arrested Monday. He told the FBI he fought alongside and sent guns to the Peshmerga, according to a court affidavit.
“Williams admitted that he did not have a license to send firearms to Iraq and that what he did was wrong,” an FBI agent wrote in the affidavit.
The Peshmerga has fought with the United States against the Islamic State. The Peshmerga was described in the affidavit as a “guerilla organization that fights for a free Kurdish state in Iraq.”
He came under suspicion in 2018 after a shipment of tools was intercepted in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Hidden inside the tools were disassembled Glock pistols. The shipment was sent by Williams from Oklahoma City and was going to “Williams Refrigeration” in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, according to the affidavit.
Williams admitted sending those pistols and claimed he knew they had been intercepted, according to the FBI affidavit. He said he was overseas at the time and individuals had tried to talk him out of coming back home.
He also admitted to having sent two rifles to Iraq hidden with torque wrenches, according to the affidavit.
He is accused of accepting $12,761 in wire transfers in 2018 to purchase the weapons.
The maximum punishment on the most serious offense, smuggling, is 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
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