(Archived Content)
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today designated Afghan national Pahlawan Rozi, pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act), for his significant role in international narcotics trafficking.
Rozi, a weapons and narcotics trafficker and hawala owner in northern Afghanistan, smuggles drugs across the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border. Through his narcotics trafficking activities, Rozi has acquired large amounts of money and assets, including buildings, businesses, and orchards in Kunduz Province. He has also bribed and made payments to high-ranking Afghan Government officials to avoid police interference in his narcotics trafficking activities.
“Rozi’s role as a hawaladar and narcotics trafficker has incited violence and fueled crime throughout the Afghan region,” said OFAC Director Adam J. Szubin. “Treasury will not tolerate these illicit activities, which undermine confidence in the legitimate financial system, and we will continue to target and expose criminals like Rozi.”
This designation is the result of collaboration between Treasury, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Afghanistan Threat Finance Cell (ATFC). The ATFC, which is based in Afghanistan, collects, analyzes, and disseminates intelligence reporting on Afghan insurgent financing.
As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons in which Rozi has an interest is blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with him.
Today’s action is part of Treasury's ongoing efforts to apply financial sanctions against significant foreign narcotics traffickers and their organizations. Since June 2000, the OFAC has designated more than 1,400 individuals and entities pursuant to the Kingpin Act. Kingpin Act violations may result in the imposition of civil fines and criminal penalties. Criminal penalties for corporate officers may include up to 30 years in prison and fines up to $5 million while criminal fines for corporations may reach $10 million. Criminal penalties for other individuals may include up to 10 years in prison and fines pursuant to Title 18 of the United States Code for criminal violations of the Kingpin Act.
For a complete listing of designations pursuant to the Kingpin Act, click here.
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