Iranian Citizen Arrested; Had Held Security Clearance

A former civilian engineer for the Department of the Navy faces a litany of charges stemming from allegations that he secretly was an Iranian citizen. The man, identified in a Feb. 4 indictment as James Robert Baker, held an Iranian passport and several other pieces of information in both that name and the one he was given at birth – Majid Karami. According to the 26-page indictment, filed in federal court in Virginia, Karami emigrated from Iran and became a U.S. citizen in 1985. He later worked as an engineer, with a security clearance, for both the Naval Sea Systems Command and the Naval Surface Warfare Center until authorities learned of his secret Iranian citizenship. The indictment outlined numerous activities in which Baker traveled to Iran on an Iranian passport and held several U.S. Social Security numbers, as well driver’s licenses in five different states. The indictment also cited transfers of money to Iran from his U.S. bank accounts. Baker’s case is still pending before the court.