Two San Diego-based sailors, Machinist’s Mate 3rd Class Jinchao Wei and Construction Electrician 2nd Class Wenheng Zhao, have been arrested and charged by the U.S. Justice Department (DoJ) with providing sensitive military information to China. They face separate indictments for similar crimes, but it is unclear if they were connected or courted by the same Chinese intelligence officer. Wei is charged with espionage involving conspiracy to send national defense information to an unidentified Chinese intelligence officer. On the other hand, Zhao is accused of taking bribes in exchange for providing sensitive U.S. Navy photos and videos to a Chinese intelligence officer.
The unsealed DoJ indictment alleges that Wei passed sensitive military information to a Chinese intelligence officer as recently as two days before his first court appearance on August 3, 2023. The information he provided included photos, videos, and dozens of technical and training manuals and other documents concerning U.S. Navy ships and their systems. The two allegedly agreed to hide their communications by deleting records of their conversations and using encrypted methods of communication. Wei made around $10,000 to $15,000 from the arrangement.
The DoJ charged Wei under the Espionage Act, a rarely used statute making it a crime to gather or deliver information to aid a foreign government. The FBI and Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) investigated the case.
In the case of Zhao, 26 and from Monterey Park, California, he had a U.S. security clearance and allegedly received more than $14,800 from a Chinese intelligence officer. In exchange, he allegedly sent non-public and controlled operational plans for a large-scale U.S. military exercise in the Indo-Pacific Region. Zhao also photographed electrical diagrams and blueprints for a radar system stationed on a U.S. military base in Okinawa, Japan. His trial is set to begin on September 26 in Los Angeles. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
According to the DoJ press release, the FBI Los Angeles Field Office’s Counterintelligence and Cyber Division and NCIS investigated the case. IRS Criminal Investigation provided substantial assistance.
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