Chinese national admits trying to obtain restricted U.S. military communications equipment.
A Chinese national has pleaded guilty to attempting to obtain military communications equipment made for the U.S. military, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). Dingwei Chen, 29, pleaded guilty Monday in federal court in Salt Lake City to violating the Arms Export Control Act. U.S. District Judge David Sam accepted the plea and set Chen’s sentencing for October 19. Chen faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
Federal prosecutors said Chen worked with people in China to obtain military-grade satellite modems and radios made by American companies. The equipment is subject to U.S. export controls, meaning it generally cannot be sent to China without approval from the U.S. State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls. Investigators said Chen and others tried to obtain the equipment through foreign arms dealers and planned several ways to move it out of the United States. The group first discussed sending the equipment through Switzerland. Later, the plans involved picking up the goods in Saipan before the group eventually considered moving the equipment through Mexico.
The case involved an attempted purchase of ten satellite modems. According to court records, Chen and his associates initially paid more than $40,000 toward the purchase. The group later switched to cryptocurrency payments. Prosecutors said roughly $30,000 in USDT, a form of cryptocurrency, was used for additional payments connected to the deal.
The group also took steps to keep the effort hidden from authorities. Chen and his associates communicated through an encrypted messaging application while discussing the equipment and plans for moving it. According to prosecutors, Chen told others that the initial purchase was only the beginning and that funding was available for the purchase of tens of millions of dollars’ worth of additional military equipment.
Federal officials said the equipment involved in the case could provide advanced communications capabilities to a foreign government. Such systems are used by the U.S. military and can play a role in allowing service members to communicate and operate in difficult environments.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said the case involved an effort to divert sensitive American military technology to China. Federal officials said the equipment could have been used by the Chinese government against U.S. interests in the future. The investigation was handled by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service. Officials said investigators from different offices worked together to track the attempted purchase and prevent the equipment from reaching China.
Spiros Karabinas, acting special agent in charge of HSI New Jersey, said the case shows the legal consequences that can follow efforts to illegally obtain or move military equipment and technology out of the United States. James R. Ives, director of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, said advanced communications systems are important to military operations and the safety of U.S. service members. He said federal investigators would continue pursuing people who try to obtain and illegally export protected technology.
Chen’s case is being prosecuted by Christopher Magnani, a trial attorney with the Justice Department’s National Security Division. The department said the case remains part of its work to enforce U.S. export laws and protect military technology from being transferred to foreign adversaries. Chen is scheduled to be sentenced October 19.
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Chinese National Pleads Guilty to Trying to Obtain U.S. Military Equipment
Chinese national pleads guilty to illegally attempting to export US military hardware
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