Rice Lake Settles with OFAC for $60,764 Over Iran Sanctions Violations
The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has reached a $60,764 settlement with Rice Lake Weighing Systems over eight apparent violations of U.S. sanctions on Iran involving the company’s Italian subsidiary.
OFAC said Dini Argeo S.r.l., which Rice Lake acquired in 2016, exported weighing equipment and components through a distributor in the United Arab Emirates while knowing the goods were ultimately destined for Iran. The eight transactions took place between June 2019 and November 2021 and were worth approximately $121,527.
The conduct followed the 2018 revocation of General License H, after which foreign entities owned or controlled by U.S. persons were no longer authorised to conduct the relevant trade with Iran. OFAC said Rice Lake informed its subsidiary that Iran-related transactions were prohibited, but did not take sufficient steps to ensure personnel understood that indirect sales through third countries were also covered.
Rice Lake began an investigation after receiving a tip in late 2021, stopped further sales to the UAE distributor and voluntarily disclosed the matter to OFAC. The agency classified the apparent violations as non-egregious and noted the company’s cooperation and subsequent compliance enhancements, including additional subsidiary training, distributor vetting and re-export control warnings on commercial invoices.
OFAC said the case highlights the sanctions exposure U.S. companies can face through foreign subsidiaries and the need for controls that address indirect re-export and diversion risks, not only direct dealings with sanctioned jurisdictions.
