A Chinese national illegally in the United States was sentenced to prison this week for exporting weapons, ammunition, and technology to North Korea.
In a Tuesday press release, the Justice Department announced that Shenghua Wen, a 42-year-old illegal immigrant from China, was sentenced on Monday to 96 months in prison for “illegally exporting firearms, ammunition, and other military items to North Korea by concealing them inside shipping containers that departed from the Port of Long Beach.” The Justice Department noted that the illegal immigrant’s crime was committed at the direction of North Korean government officials and that he was paid roughly $2 million for his crimes.
According to the Justice Department, Wen pleaded guilty in June to acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government and to conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The Justice Department explained that the Chinese national entered the United States on a student visa in 2012 and illegally remained in the country after his visa expired in December of 2013.
Tuesday’s press release noted that Wen met with North Korean government officials at an embassy in China before coming to the United States. At the time, North Korean officials instructed Wen to obtain goods and smuggle them to North Korea.
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“In 2022, two North Korean government officials contacted Wen through an online messaging platform and instructed him to buy and smuggle firearms and other goods — including sensitive technology — from the United States to North Korea via China,” the Justice Department stated. “In 2023, at the direction of North Korean government officials, Wen shipped at least three containers of firearms out of the Port of Long Beach to China en route to their ultimate destination in North Korea.”
The Justice Department said Wen purchased a Houston firearms business in May of 2023 with money he was sent through intermediaries by his North Korean contacts. According to the Justice Department, Wen purchased firearms in Texas, transported them to California, and arranged for the weapons to be shipped to North Korea.
Tuesday’s press release also noted that North Korean officials directed the Chinese national to purchase roughly 60,000 9mm ammunition rounds in September of 2024 to ship to North Korea.
According to the Justice Department, Wen also obtained “sensitive technology,” including a “chemical threat identification device” and a broadband receiver that detects various transmissions, that he intended to export to North Korea. Additionally, the Justice Department said the Chinese national obtained or offered to obtain a thermal imaging system and a civilian airplane engine.
