A Japanese national, Takeshi Ebisawa, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to traffic nuclear materials, narcotics, and firearms internationally. Ebisawa pleaded guilty to six charges related to these offenses before U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon in the Southern District of New York.
“National security and public safety are the very tenets of DEA’s mission, and this case demonstrates our ability to dismantle the world’s most dangerous criminal networks,” said Administrator Terrance Cole of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. “Today’s sentence should send a clear message: threatening the United States by trafficking nuclear materials, narcotics, and military-grade weapons will trigger an uncompromising response. DEA will hold conspirators accountable—no matter the distance, no matter their allegiance.”
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg stated: “Thanks to the exceptional work of the DEA and our DOJ prosecutors, Takeshi Ebisawa has been held accountable for his crimes, including an attempt to sell weapons-grade plutonium to Iran and to flood New York with deadly narcotics. The National Security Division will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and dismantle criminal networks that seek to profit from the illicit trade in deadly weapons and substances.”
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York commented: “The illicit trafficking of nuclear materials is an existential threat to every New Yorker and every American. Takeshi Ebisawa tried to sell uranium, thorium, and plutonium to fuel a purported nuclear weapons program, along with deadly drugs destined for U.S. streets. In exchange, Ebisawa hoped to procure battlefield weapons for insurgent groups and profit for himself. This case is a testament to the extraordinary efforts of our law enforcement partners, who worked across three continents to stop Ebisawa and bring him to justice in the United States.”
According to court documents and public records from 2019 until his arrest on April 4, 2022, authorities investigated Ebisawa’s activities involving large-scale trafficking operations across multiple countries including Japan, Thailand, Burma (Myanmar), Sri Lanka, Denmark, Indonesia, India (New Delhi), and the United States.
During this period:
– An undercover DEA agent was introduced into Ebisawa’s network as part of four separate criminal transaction negotiations.
– In one operation beginning February 2022 in Thailand—with assistance from Thai authorities—samples described as containing uranium, thorium, and weapons-grade plutonium were seized after being offered by Ebisawa’s associates.
– Investigations confirmed these samples contained detectable quantities of those nuclear materials.
– In another scheme starting February 2021 involving heroin and methamphetamine intended for distribution in New York City markets—and arms believed sourced from former U.S. military stockpiles—Ebisawa traveled abroad (including Denmark) inspecting heavy weaponry such as anti-tank rockets.
– Additional drug transactions involved providing high-purity heroin (86–87%) and methamphetamine (98%) samples in Thailand during June/September 2021.
– Financial crimes included laundering $100,000 labeled as drug proceeds between U.S.-based accounts controlled by co-conspirators; funds were later delivered as yen equivalent cash in Tokyo.
Ebisawa received five years of supervised release following his prison term.
The investigation was coordinated by several agencies within the DEA—including Special Operations Division Bilateral Investigations Unit—and supported by IRS Criminal Investigation alongside offices across Asia-Pacific regions as well as Denmark’s law enforcement community.
Prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kaylan E. Lasky, Alexander Li, Kevin T. Sullivan (Southern District of New York), assisted by staff from DOJ’s National Security Division Counterterrorism Section.
