Bijan R. Kian (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: بیژن کیان; born January 15, 1952), sometimes written Bijan Rafiekian (بیژن رفیعی‌کیان), is an

Iranian-American Iranian-Americans, also known as Persian-Americans, are United States citizens or nationals who are of Iranian ancestry, or who hold Iranian citizenship. Most Iranian-Americans arrived in the United States after 1979, as a result of the Irani ...

businessman, who is based in

San Juan Capistrano San Juan Capistrano (also known colloquially as San Juan or SJC) is a city in southern Orange County, California, United States. The population was 35,253 at the 2020 Census. Named for Saint John of Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano was founded ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. He has been an executive or board member of many businesses and organizations.Executive Profile: Bijan R. Kian
at bloomberg.com Kian was a member of the Board of Directors of the

Export–Import Bank of the United States The Export–Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is the official export credit agency (ECA) of the United States federal government. Operating as a wholly owned federal government corporation, the bank "assists in financing and facilitating ...

from 2006 to 2011,Professional Banker, Business Executive and Educator sworn-in as the newest board member at Export-Import Bank of the United States
Ex-Im Bank press release, 9 Oct 2006Ex-Im Bank History
Export-Import Bank of the United States website. Archived at the Wayback Machine on 23 Jan 2015 after being nominated by President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

and receiving Senate confirmation. Kian was a partner of retired

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Michael Flynn Michael Thomas Flynn (born 24 December 1958) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who served as the 24th U.S. national security advisor for the first 22 days of the first Trump administration. He resigned in light of reports tha ...

in the Flynn Intel Group and worked with the 2016 incoming Trump administration's transition team on matters relating to the

Office of the Director of National Intelligence The director of national intelligence (DNI) is a cabinet-level United States government intelligence and security official. The position is required by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to serve as executive head o ...

. The US Special Counsel's office opened an investigation into Flynn and the Flynn Intel Group, including Kian, in 2017. On December 17, 2018, several months after Flynn entered into a cooperation agreement with the Special Counsel's office, and two weeks after Flynn pleaded guilty in federal court for lying to the FBI, Kian and Kamil Ekim Alptekin were indicted in US federal court. Kian was charged with illegally acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government and for lobbying the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

on behalf of

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

to extradite

Fethullah Gülen Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (27 April 1941 – 20 October 2024) was a Turkish Ulama, Muslim scholar, preacher, and leader of the Gülen movement who as of 2016 had millions of followers. Gülen was an influential Neo-Ottomanism, neo-Ottomanist, A ...

, who lives in the U.S., to Turkey, where Gülen was blamed for orchestrating a failed coup in 2016. Kian pleaded not guilty. The trial began on July 15, 2019. Contractors of the intel company gave testimony in the trial of the subject, which revealed the subject had requested surveillance of Gülen supporters, investigations of terrorist connections, and classified

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

documents on Gülen. Kian was found guilty and convicted on July 23, 2019. However, on September 24, 2019, Judge Anthony Trenga of the Eastern District of Virginia dismissed the indictment against Bijan Rafiekian, citing insufficient evidence. The U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the conviction on March 18, 2021. On September 11, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia granted a decisive dismissal with prejudice in the case against Hon. Bijan Rafiekian, as outlined in "Motion to Dismiss Charges Against Mr. Rafiekian." This permanent dismissal ceases any further prosecution for the alleged offenses, effectively clearing him. The court's decision underscores the robust legal protections within the U.S. legal system. Mr. MacDougall, Rafiekian’s attorney, stated: Per the attorney, “this case should never have been indicted”. This statement reflects the gravity and relief accompanying the court’s judgment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kian, Bijan 21st-century American businesspeople American people of Iranian descent Living people First Trump administration personnel 1952 births Businesspeople from Tehran People from San Juan Capistrano, California

See also

References