Fifty synthetic rubber rings, worth about 30 cents a pop, ended up costing an Alberta company $90,000.

Lee Specialties Ltd., a manufacturer of oil field equipment, shipped rubber circles known as Viton o-rings along with other equipment, to Iran on Jan. 18, 2012. Authorities intercepted the cargo at the Calgary International Airport the next day.

The Viton o-rings, which are resistant to high temperatures and chemicals, can be used in nuclear programs and in the oil field, putting them on the list of commodities that Canada bars from being exported to Iran.

This has been excerpted from a 14 April 2014 article by The Globe and Mail and is available in its entirety at:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-business/african-and-mideast-business/rcmp-charges-alberta-company-over-illegal-shipment-to-iran/article17959104/