Carl Zeiss Optical , Chester, Virginia, Agrees to Settle Charges Related to Unlicensed Exports of Firearms Optical Sights Sighting

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced today that Carl Zeiss Optical , Inc. (Zeiss), of Chester , Virginia , has agreed to pay a $10,000 civil penalty to settle charges that it illegally exported optical sighting devices from the United States to Canada in violation of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR).

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) charged that, on ten occasions between June 7, 2002 and April 23, 2003, Carl Zeiss Optical exported 10 riflescopes from the United States to Canada , without obtaining the required export license.

BIS administers and enforces U.S. export laws to advance national security, foreign policy and economic interests. BIS controls optical sighting devises devices for crime control purposes and in furtherance of the Organization of American States (OAS) Firearms Convention, which was enacted by the OAS to combat the illicit manufacture of and traffic in firearms, ammunition, explosives and related materials. The Firearms Convention requires export license controls on such commodities, including those destined to Canada.

Zeiss cooperated with BIS’s investigation. Acting Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Wendy L. Wysong commended the Office of Export Enforcement’s Washington Field Office for its work in this investigation.