Arheel's Uncle
Senior Reporter
https://nypost.com/2023/08/03/2-us-...-charges-tied-to-national-security-and-china/
By
Alex Oliveira
August 3, 2023 3:50pm
Updated
Two US Navy sailors were arrested for allegedly conspiring to pass sensitive security information to Chinese officials in separate plots, officials announced Thursday.
Jinchao Wei, a 22-year-old sailor aboard the San Diego-based USS Essex, was busted Wednesday on espionage charges after he provided China with detailed information of the ship and its crew.
Federal prosecutors alleged Wei made contact with a Chinese government intelligence officer in February 2022 and provided photographs and videos of the Essex, an amphibious assault ship that specializes in transporting and deploying helicopters.
The information Wei disclosed included technical and mechanical manuals as well as details about the number and training of Marines during an upcoming exercise, the Justice Department said in its indictment.
Officials alleged the Chinese official advised Wei not to discuss their relationship and to take measures to cover his tracks and destroy any evidence that they knew each other.
Two U.S. Navy sailors have been arrested on charges related to national security and tied to China, U.S. officials said.US Navy
Wei was charged under a rarely-used Espionage Act statute that makes it a crime to gather or deliver information to aid a foreign government.
In a separate case, Navy service member Wenheng Zhao is accused of collecting bribes from a Chinese intelligence officer in exchange for sensitive military photos, videos, and plans.
The scheme allegedly began around August 2021 and continued until at least May 2023, the Justice Department said.
Jinchao Wei, a 22-year-old sailor, was arrested on a charge related to espionage involving conspiracy to send national defense information to Chinese officials, according to reports. MediaNews Group via Getty Images
Information Zhao leaked included operational plans for a US military exercise in the Indo-Pacific Region.
Prosecutors say Zhao also secretly gathered and recorded some of the information that he handed over.
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“These individuals stand accused of violating the commitments they made to protect the United States and betraying the public trust, to the benefit of the PRC government,” Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s National Security Division, Matthew G. Olsen, said.
“These arrests are a reminder of the relentless, aggressive efforts of the People’s Republic of China to undermine our democracy and threaten those who defend it,” said FBI Counterintelligence Division Assistant Director Suzanne Turner.
The two sailors were charged with similar crimes, but they were charged in separate cases.
It wasn’t clear Thursday if the two plots were connected or if the Navy sailors were courted or paid by the same Chinese intelligence officer.
2 US Navy sailors arrested on charges tied to national security and China
By
Alex Oliveira
August 3, 2023 3:50pm
Updated
Two US Navy sailors were arrested for allegedly conspiring to pass sensitive security information to Chinese officials in separate plots, officials announced Thursday.
Jinchao Wei, a 22-year-old sailor aboard the San Diego-based USS Essex, was busted Wednesday on espionage charges after he provided China with detailed information of the ship and its crew.
Federal prosecutors alleged Wei made contact with a Chinese government intelligence officer in February 2022 and provided photographs and videos of the Essex, an amphibious assault ship that specializes in transporting and deploying helicopters.
The information Wei disclosed included technical and mechanical manuals as well as details about the number and training of Marines during an upcoming exercise, the Justice Department said in its indictment.
Officials alleged the Chinese official advised Wei not to discuss their relationship and to take measures to cover his tracks and destroy any evidence that they knew each other.
Two U.S. Navy sailors have been arrested on charges related to national security and tied to China, U.S. officials said.US Navy
Wei was charged under a rarely-used Espionage Act statute that makes it a crime to gather or deliver information to aid a foreign government.
In a separate case, Navy service member Wenheng Zhao is accused of collecting bribes from a Chinese intelligence officer in exchange for sensitive military photos, videos, and plans.
The scheme allegedly began around August 2021 and continued until at least May 2023, the Justice Department said.
Jinchao Wei, a 22-year-old sailor, was arrested on a charge related to espionage involving conspiracy to send national defense information to Chinese officials, according to reports. MediaNews Group via Getty Images
Information Zhao leaked included operational plans for a US military exercise in the Indo-Pacific Region.
Prosecutors say Zhao also secretly gathered and recorded some of the information that he handed over.
What do you think? Post a comment.
“These individuals stand accused of violating the commitments they made to protect the United States and betraying the public trust, to the benefit of the PRC government,” Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s National Security Division, Matthew G. Olsen, said.
“These arrests are a reminder of the relentless, aggressive efforts of the People’s Republic of China to undermine our democracy and threaten those who defend it,” said FBI Counterintelligence Division Assistant Director Suzanne Turner.
The two sailors were charged with similar crimes, but they were charged in separate cases.
It wasn’t clear Thursday if the two plots were connected or if the Navy sailors were courted or paid by the same Chinese intelligence officer.
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