Almost a year to the day after the company was raided by an army of federal agents, Nashville firearms manufacturer Sabre Defence and its top officers have been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges relating to international firearms and trafficking violations of the Arms Export Control Act.

The 21-count indictment, announced today by U.S. Attorney Jerry E. Martin, names Sabre Defence Industries LLC (SDI-US), its United Kingdom based owner Guy Savage, 42, and four locally based officers: President Charles Shearon, 55, of Ashland City; CFO Elmer Hill, 64, of Brentwood; Director of Sales Michael Curlett, 44, of Hermitage; and International Shipping and Purchasing Manager Arnold See, Jr., 54, of Antioch.

They are all accused of being part of a conspiracy to illegally import and export regulated firearms and firearm components and technology to and from the United States.

Savage was arrested today in the United Kingdom by the London Metropolitan Police Service based on the United States’ request for his extradition. The remaining defendants will be issued a summons to appear in U.S. District court in Nashville, Tennessee.

When the Nashville plant of Sabre Defence was raided on February 17, 2010, the company issued a  statement implying that lower level employees would be falling on the proverbial sword. That statement, in part, read: "Sabre has received information that employee(s) involved in inventory control may have obtained and re-sold some items without appropriate licenses. Sabre is and has been cooperating with federal agents in this investigation."

Today's indictment alleges that Savage directed the illegal activities from his personal residences in the United Kingdom, as well as from a related company, Sabre Defence Industries, LTD (SDI-UK), a licensed manufacturer, distributor and importer of firearms and firearms components, also owned by Savage and headquartered in the United Kingdom.

Martin was joined in today's announcement by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Department of Justice-Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge Glenn N. Anderson; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Nashville Field Division; and Raymond R. Parmer, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New Orleans.

"The investigation and indictment are an excellent example of how the United States Attorney’s Office, the Criminal Division, HSI, ATF and international law enforcement agencies are working together to prevent firearms and firearm components from being diverted to locations around the world,” said Martin. “ We recognize the role that weapons play in a sometimes violent world and we will vigorously enforce the laws to prevent the illegal importation of firearms and firearm components."

Furthermore, the indictment alleges that "each of the defendants conspired to intentionally violate the AECA by causing firearms components, which are listed as defense articles on the United States Munitions List (USML), to be exported from the United States to an international location without first obtaining a license or written authorization for such export from the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) of the United States Department of State."

The government alleges that the defendants had been engaged in the illegal import and export activities since at least 2003.

The indictment references specific shipping documents and internal email communications in which the defendants and others, including SDI-US and SDI-UK employees — at times under specific direction from Savage — conspired to avoid United States import and export laws and regulations in order to smuggle firearm components into and from the United States by falsifying shipping records, concealing unlicensed firearms components in false bottoms of shipping cartons, and mislabeling and undervaluing shipments of firearm components to avoid scrutiny by Customs and Border Control Officers.

In addition, according to the indictment, the defendants used international common carriers to ship restricted defense items to and from the United States and sought to conceal their activities by maintaining two sets of business books to record the company’s accounts and balances and its export and import activities. The indictment alleges that one set of books recorded the true transactions by SDI-US, and a second set recorded the undervalued amounts used on shipping manifests in an effort to circumvent U.S. export licensing requirements.

Each count of violating the AECA carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The conspiracy and making false statements charges each carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty, if convicted of wire and mail fraud, is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count. Finally, the smuggling goods from the United States charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The indictment was the result of an investigation conducted by HSI and ATF, with assistance from the London Metropolitan Police Service, International Assistance Unit.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John K. Webb and Trial Attorney John S. Han of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Racketeering Section. Additional assistance was provided by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the National Security Division.