A federal court in Texas on Dec. 3 preliminarily enjoined the government from enforcing the Corporate Transparency Act's (CTA) beneficial ownership information reporting requirements, finding that the law violates various elements of the U.S. Constitution. Judge Amons Mazzant found that the CTA "intrudes upon States' rights under the Ninth and Tenth Amendments," compels speech and harms the right of association under the First Amendment and violates the Fourth Amendment by "compelling disclosure of private information."

McKinsey and Co. Africa, a subsidiary of consulting giant McKinsey, will pay over $122 million to settle an investigation that found the company violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by paying bribes to South African government officials from 2012 to 2016, DOJ announced. A former McKinsey senior partner, Vikas Sagar, pleaded guilty to his role in the scheme.

A Chinese national was arrested on Dec. 3 for allegedly conspiring to export firearms, ammunition and other military items to North Korea, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California announced. Shenghua Wen, an illegal resident of California, was charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.

DOJ filed a civil forfeiture complaint Dec. 2 in the U.S. District Court for Southern District of New York, seeking the proceeds from the sale of a California music studio that are allegedly beneficially owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. The complaint alleges that the proceeds, totaling $3.4 million, "are the proceeds of sanctions violations."

A dual U.S.-Russian citizen was arrested Dec. 2 for trying to export two small aircraft to Russia, said DOJ, which also seized the aircraft.

The founder and former CEO of a California-based freight forwarding company pleaded guilty on Nov. 26 to conspiring to violate export laws by sending goods to Chinese companies on the Commerce Department's Entity List, DOJ announced.

Amin Betuni of Palos Hills, Illinois, was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for illegally exporting firearm parts to Israel, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced. Betuni pleaded guilty to shipping firearm parts, including rifle barrels, gas blocks for rifles and bolt carrier groups, to individuals in Israel "on at least three occasions in 2022," the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Two Dominican nationals were sentenced to two years in prison and then two years of supervised release for smuggling juvenile American eels from Puerto Rico, DOJ announced. Saul Enrique Jose De la Cruz was sentenced on Nov. 21, and Simon De la Cruz Paredes was sentenced earlier this month.

An Indian national violated U.S. export controls by lying on at least one export application for dual-use aerospace technology, telling the government the item would be exported to India when he actually planned to send it to Russia, according to a DOJ indictment unsealed last week and the sworn affidavit of a Bureau of Industry and Security special agent.

Richard Allen, a former Navy officer, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for his role in a scheme to steal more than $850,000 worth of military gear and sell it to bidders from China, Russia and dozens of other countries, DOJ announced last week.