(Preview) ITAR violation of the week, #1: John Mayer, night vision, Russia, and sexual napalm
Two documents. One involved the actual John Mayer. The other just borrowed his name to ship night vision to Moscow. Both demonstrated a concerning lack of self-preservation instinct.
Neither involved a functional understanding of what shouldn’t be committed to the public record. This is a work in progress preview/draft note for myself of the debut ITAR violation of the week post. More to come within a few days from now.
Playboy Magazine, March 2010
PLAYBOY: In 2006 you began dating Jessica Simpson, and the paparazzi started stalking you, turning you into a tabloid fixture. Certainly you knew that was going to happen.
MAYER: It wasn’t as direct as me saying “I now make the choice to bring the paparazzi into my life.” I really said, “I now make the choice to sleep with Jessica Simpson.” That was stronger than my desire to stay out of the paparazzi’s eye. That girl, for me, is a drug. And drugs aren’t good for you if you do lots of them. Yeah, that girl is like crack cocaine to me.
United States v. Panchernikov et al., Central District of California, 2021
Overt Act No. 26: On November 20, 2017, an eBay seller e-mailed defendant GOHMAN, “This is an ITAR item and must stay in the US.” Defendant GOHMAN replied, “Sure stay in US.”
Playboy Magazine, March 2010
PLAYBOY: You were addicted to Jessica Simpson?
MAYER: Sexually it was crazy. That’s all I’ll say. It was like napalm, sexual napalm.
United States v. Panchernikov et al., Central District of California, 2021
Overt Act No. 41: On January 5, 2018, defendant GOHMAN e-mailed defendant SHIFRIN instructions for sending packages to three addresses in Moscow, Russia: from “John Mayer” at 687 N. Milwaukee Ave, Vernon Hills, Illinois to “Olga Sotnikova,” with the contents listed as “Manual tool Pacific.”
Playboy Magazine, March 2010
MAYER: Have you ever been with a girl who made you want to quit the rest of your life? Did you ever say, “I want to quit my life and just snort you?”
United States v. Panchernikov et al., Central District of California, 2021
Overt Act No. 52: On February 24, 2018, an unknown co-conspirator exported a package to “Olga Sotnikova.” Sender: “John Mayer,” an alias. Contents: “Kitchen Accessories, Women Clothes, Women Shoes.”
Full post dropping once the insane rewriting ends.