A former Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) contractor was indicted Friday for acting as an illegal agent for the Iranian government, the Department of Justice said.

According to a DOJ release, from at least December 2017 through June 2024, 42-year-old Abouzar Rahmati allegedly met with Iranian government officials and acted on their behalf.

Rahmati, a naturalized U.S. citizen and resident of Great Falls, Virginia, previously was an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) 1st Lt., a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, from June 2009 to May 2010. The IRGC is a designated terrorist group by the U.S. government.

After being discharged from the IRGC, the indictment alleges that Rahmati lied to the U.S. government regarding his military service with the IRGC in order to gain employment as a U.S. contractor.

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In Aug. 2017, prosecutors allege that Rahmati began communicating with a senior Iranian government official with whom he had previously attended college.

Four months later, Rahmati traveled to Iran and met with intelligence operatives. During the meetings, he agreed to obtain and provide them with information on the U.S. solar energy industry.

Following the initial meetings, Rahmati got to work as a spy for the Iranian government. Prosecutors said that he eventually became a contractor for FAA’s National Airspace System (NAS), which allowed him to be privy to sensitive information.

Authorities alleged that in April 2022, Rahmati downloaded private documents related to the FAA and the NAS power and electrical architecture and passed them along to Iran’s government.

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He also gave the Government of Iran additional information relating to solar energy, solar panels, the FAA, U.S. airports, and U.S. air traffic control.

A Federal Aviation Administration sign hangs in the tower at John F. Kennedy International Airport, March 16, 2017, in New York.  (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

“As alleged, the defendant conspired with Iranian officials and intelligence operatives, even lying to obtain employment as a U.S. government contractor only to then share sensitive government materials with Iran,” Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division said. “When undisclosed agents of Iran or any other foreign government seek to infiltrate American companies or government agencies, the Justice Department will use every available tool to identify them and bring them to justice.”

Rahmani made his initial appearance in the District of Columbia on Friday afternoon.

The Siege of Yorktown, Virginia, the decisive battle in America’s shocking triumph over the mighty British Empire in its War of Independence, began on this day in history, Sept. 28, 1781. 

The siege ended three weeks later, on Oct. 19, with the surrender of the British garrison led by Lord Charles Cornwallis. 

George Washington’s Continental Army and French allies surrounded the Redcoats by both land and sea. 

“The British surrender forecast the end of British rule in the colonies and the birth of a new nation — the United States of America,” writes the American Battlefield Trust.

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The United States had won its daring bid for independence on the battlefield five years after it publicly declared it on paper. 

Britain formally recognized American independence almost exactly two years later, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on Sept. 3, 1783. 

The Americans, aided by French troops under Comte de Rochambeau, set a trap for the outnumbered Redcoats at Yorktown. 

Washington’s American forces enjoyed the leadership of another Frenchman, the remarkable Marquis de Lafayette.

Their 19,000 troops, almost evenly split between the allied nations, surrounded about 9,000 Redcoats on a spit of land where the York River meets Chesapeake Bay.

French warships had sailed into Chesapeake Bay just weeks earlier. 

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Cornwallis had no way to escape and realized his cause was hopeless. He surrendered with relatively little loss of life considered the forces amassed. 

About 800 men were killed or wounded between the combatants, according to the American Battlefield Trust. But the victory for the Americans was overwhelming and decisive.

Illustration of General George Washington directing the retreat of the Continental Army across the East River, from Brooklyn to Manhattan, after their defeat at the hands of British forces during the battle of Long Island, August 29, 1776. Engraving by JC Armytage from a painting by Wageman. (Photo by Interim Archives/Getty Images)

Cornwallis surrendered his entire garrison. 

The American Revolution was over.

 The United States had won. 

“Washington’s fame grew to international proportions having wrested such an improbable victory.”

The victory required a remarkable bit of logistical and intellectual dexterity by both Washington and Rochambeau. 

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Just weeks earlier, they were working on a long-intended plan to defeat the British under Gen. Henry Clinton in a decisive battle in New York City. 

The Redcoats had occupied New York for nearly the entire war after smashing and humiliating Washington’s army in 1776. 

Generals Rochambeau (1725-1807) and Washington (1732-1799) give the last orders for attack at the siege of Yorktown. With them is the Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834). (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

“In the spring of 1781, Washington traveled to Rhode Island to meet with Comte de Rochambeau and plan an attack on Clinton,” writes the National Park Service in its history of the Siege of Yorktown. 

“A French fleet was expected to arrive in New York later that summer, and Washington wanted to coordinate the attack with the fleet’s arrival. As planned, Rochambeau’s army marched in July and joined with Washington’s troops outside New York City.”

Just weeks earlier, the American and French were working on a long-intended plan to defeat the British in a decisive battle in New York City. 

It was only then, in July, that they learned the French fleet was instead sailing into Chesapeake Bay. 

Washington quickly devised a cunning new plan to leverage the long-awaited French naval forces and smash Cornwallis’s forces in Yorktown.

“In order to fool Clinton, Washington had his men build big army camps and huge brick bread ovens visible from New York to give the appearance of preparations for a stay,” reports the National Park Service. 

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“Washington also prepared false papers under his signature discussing plans for an attack on Clinton, and let these papers fall into British hands.” 

With the subterfuge established, Washington and Rochambeau marched for Yorktown in the middle of August, parading past the Continental Congress in Philadelphia in September before reaching Yorktown and setting siege to Cornwallis. 

“Washington’s fame grew to international proportions having wrested such an improbable victory, interrupting his much-desired Mount Vernon retirement with greater calls to public service,” writes the library of George Washington’s Mount Vernon.

A highly anticipated luxury hotel is finally reopening in the heart of Palm Beach, Florida, after closing in 2007.

L+R Iconic Luxury Hotels purchased the property, which is situated in a prime location just steps from the coastline, in 2019. The company worked to get the property back to its original glory for three years.

The Palm House opens in November.

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General Manager Chris Jaycock told Fox News Digital via email the building, constructed in 1961, was always targeted to become a luxury hotel, but plans failed to materialize several times.

“The L+R team took it from being an abandoned building and worked with all stakeholders to bring the desire to reality, and it has now been completely transformed, creating a new chapter for this incredible Palm Beach landmark,” said Jaycock.

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The property was purchased to give guests the feel of a classic restored home to create a place of “relaxed exclusivity and discretion.”  

The Palm House is opening in a prime location after being abandoned for 17 years. (Muza Lab)

To maintain the building’s timeless character, key architectural features such as the signature coral facade, carved cypress arbors and limestone arches have been preserved.

“The new design artfully integrates these historic elements while reimagining the iconic pink and green hues of vintage Palm Beach to create a hotel that is fresh, bright, bold and inviting,” said Jaycock. 

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Palm Beach has long been known as a playground for millionaires and billionaires.

To maintain the building’s timeless character, key architectural features, such as the signature coral facade, carved cypress arbors and limestone arches have been preserved. (Muza Lab)

In March, a waterfront home owned by interior designer Victoria Hagan and businessman Michael Berman sold for $60 million in Palm Beach, Fox News Digital reported.

From January to June, the area welcomed 5.19 million visitors, an all-time high compared to the same period from previous years, according to Discover The Palm Beaches, a travel planning resource located in West Palm Beach.

Francisco Macedo, senior vice president of Iconic Luxury Hotels, told Fox News Digital via email that Florida was a natural choice for the British-based company’s expansion.

Double-occupancy room rates at The Palm House will start at $1,289 during the “peak season” and drop to $499 in the off season. (Muza Labs)

“Renowned for its prestigious reputation and affluent visitors, Palm Beach allows us to introduce this ethos to the U.S. market. With strong demand for Florida during the winter months, Palm Beach is the ideal location,” said Macedo.

Macedo said that, in 2022, over 1 million visitors from the U.K. traveled to Florida, making the U.K. the second-largest source of international visitors to the state.

Double-occupancy room rates at The Palm House will start at $1,289 during the “peak season” and drop to $499 in the off season.