U.S. opposes bail for Iranian suspect

Federal prosecutors yesterday released the content of jailhouse phone calls to reinforce their contention that an indicted Chester County chemical engineer is a flight risk.

The conversations between Ali Amirnazmi, 64, a U.S. and Iranian citizen accused of illicitly consorting with Iranian officials, and his daughter, who lives in western Pennsylvania, were included as a supplement to the government's motion opposing bail, court records said.

Prosecutors contend that Amirnazmi, a former Berwyn resident who operated TranTech Consultants Inc., an Exton chemical software firm, met regularly with high-level Iranian officials to conduct business. Iran has been off-limits to U.S. companies since 1979, when Islamic militants seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran.

According to federal prison policy, all outside calls by inmates are recorded except those with defendants' attorneys.

Amirnazmi's attorney, Elizabeth K. Ainslie, could not be reached for comment.

The bail-motion supplement says that Amirnazmi told his daughter on Sept. 6 that he successfully smuggled a letter to her by giving it to one of his visitors.

On Sept. 8, he asked his daughter for the phone numbers of the Iranian U.N. representative and the president of Iran, the motion said. In a Sept. 21 conversation, he expressed hope that he would be released and would go to Iran "in one hour," words he repeated for emphasis, the motion said.

"This call speaks for itself regarding his risk of flight," the motion said.

A bail hearing is scheduled for Friday before U.S. District Judge Cynthia M. Rufe.

The charges against Amirnazmi - in custody since July 25 - include violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which authorized sanctions against Iran, and bank fraud. If convicted, he faces decades in prison, according to sentencing guidelines.