Iishiba gets 1-year in prison for firearms smuggling
A U.S. Army captain who was intelligence liaison to the Japanese military was sentenced Friday to a year and a day in prison for a firearms smuggling conspiracy.
U.S. District Judge Marsha J Pechman rejected a recommendation from both sides that Capt Tomoaki Iishiba be spared time behind bars. She says the 34-year-old showed poor judgment.
After serving his sentence, Iishiba faces three years on supervised release.
He was indicted in July for conspiring with another person to export, without authorization, firearm components to Japan from 2006 to February 2008 while working for the intelligence unit at Fort Lewis in Washington state. Such components included 60 sights attached to guns.
He was removed from the unit after his indictment.
Prosecutors said the goods were shipped to officials of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, defense equipment traders and friends.
Iishiba, who acquired U.S. citizenship after moving to the United States, joined the U.S. Army in 1999. He participated in operations against the Taliban in Afghanistan and penned a few books about his military experiences, plus weapons manuals.
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