Undocumented Chinese Immigrant Arrested in California on Suspicion of Secretly Shipping Millions of Dollars Worth of Weapons and Tech to North Korea

An undocumented Chinese immigrant was arrested in California after allegedly shipping millions of dollars worth of weapons, ammunition and military-grade tech to North Korea.

Shenghua Wen, 41, who entered the U.S. in 2012 on a student visa and overstayed after its expiration, reportedly began collaborating with North Korean officials, receiving $2 million for procuring restricted military equipment, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office report.

Using a Texas-based company he acquired, Wen purchased firearms and ammunition and concealed them in mislabeled shipping containers bound for North Korea via Long Beach and Hong Kong, ABC7 reported.

Federal agents arrested Wen on November 26, 2024, after uncovering alarming evidence during raids of his Ontario, California home, including devices intended for North Korea's military, 50,000 rounds of ammunition and communications detailing plans to acquire a civilian plane engine for developing North Korean military drones.

"The conduct alleged in this complaint is chilling," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said. "One of our foreign adversaries, North Korea, was running an operative in our country and using that operative to obtain high-grade technology and military equipment including firearms and ammunition."

Authorities have charged Wen with violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a crime carrying up to 20 years in prison. Other charges include conspiring to secretly ship weapons, ammunition and military-grade technology worth millions of dollars to North Korea.

"We know he shipped at least two different shipments in 2023, and one of these shipments was labeled a refrigerator," Estrada said. "Another was labeled as camera parts, but we now know they actually contained materials that were illegal to ship to North Korea, including firearms, ammunition and high grade technology."

Wen is scheduled for arraignment in the coming weeks, with ongoing investigations likely to uncover further connections to co-conspirators and additional shipments.

Originally published by Latin Times