A chinese national pleaded guilty to shipping weapons, ammunition and other sensitive items to North Korea from the United States, the US Justice Department has announced.
Shengua Wen, 42, living in the United States pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges for illegally exporting firearms, ammunition and other military items to North Korea, reported United Press International.
Wen acted under the instructions of North Korean government officials and was paid approximately US$2 million for his efforts, the department said in a press release.
Wen, who was living in Ontario, California, without permanent legal status, concealed the goods inside shipping containers that departed from the Port of Long Beach, prosecutors said.
According to the plea agreement, Wen admitted to shipping at least three containers of guns to China en route to North Korea in 2023. He bought a firearms business in Houston, Texas, to acquire the guns and filed false export paperwork to conceal the contents of his containers.
In September 2024, Wen allegedly purchased 60,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition that he intended to ship to North Korea. He also obtained sensitive technology, including 'a chemical threat identification device and a handheld broadband receiver that detects known, unknown, illegal, disruptive or interfering transmissions,' the press release said.
Wen met government officials at a North Korean embassy in China, where he was instructed to procure the weapons and sensitive items, according to his plea agreement. He then entered the United States in 2012 on a student visa and remained after it expired in December 2013.
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Shengua Wen, 42, living in the United States pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges for illegally exporting firearms, ammunition and other military items to North Korea, reported United Press International.
Wen acted under the instructions of North Korean government officials and was paid approximately US$2 million for his efforts, the department said in a press release.
Wen, who was living in Ontario, California, without permanent legal status, concealed the goods inside shipping containers that departed from the Port of Long Beach, prosecutors said.
According to the plea agreement, Wen admitted to shipping at least three containers of guns to China en route to North Korea in 2023. He bought a firearms business in Houston, Texas, to acquire the guns and filed false export paperwork to conceal the contents of his containers.
In September 2024, Wen allegedly purchased 60,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition that he intended to ship to North Korea. He also obtained sensitive technology, including 'a chemical threat identification device and a handheld broadband receiver that detects known, unknown, illegal, disruptive or interfering transmissions,' the press release said.
Wen met government officials at a North Korean embassy in China, where he was instructed to procure the weapons and sensitive items, according to his plea agreement. He then entered the United States in 2012 on a student visa and remained after it expired in December 2013.
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