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September 30, 2004
NEWS SUMMARY: Four Arrested in Scheme to Export Restricted Electronic Equipment to the People’s Republic of China
Four persons, including two Chinese citizens and two residents of Manitowoc, Wisconsin, have been arrested based upon a criminal complaint which charges them with conspiring to illegally export more than $500,000 in restricted electronic components to the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”), United States Attorney Steven M. Biskupic announced September 30, 2004. According to the complaint, the components in question could “be used in a wide variety of military radar and communications applications.”
The four persons arrested are:
*Ning Wen (d/o/b 4/12/49), a male United States citizen residing at 402 Wild Oak Drive in Manitowoc;
*Hailin Lin (4/28/49), the wife of Wen and also a U.S. citizen residing at 402 Wild Oak Drive in Manitowoc;
*Jian Guo Qu (9/30/59), a male citizen of the PRC employed at the Beijing Rich Linscience Electronic Company; and
*Ruo Ling Wang (5/14/64), believed to be the wife of Qu; also a citizen of the PRC employed at the Beijing Rich Linscience Electronic Company.
The four were arrested in Milwaukee and Manitowoc today by a task force which included agents from (a) the Federal Bureau of Investigation; (b) the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Export Enforcement; (c) the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Immigration and Custom Enforcement; and (d) the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. The Manitowoc Police Department also provided assistance.
According to the criminal complaint, since at least 2001, Wen and Lin used a business called “Wen Enterprises,” which they operated from their home in Manitowoc, to ship restricted parts to Qu and Wang at Beijing Rich Linscience Electronic Company in China. The complaint alleges that for most of these transactions, Lin obtained the restricted technology from a United States manufacturer or supplier based on a request from Wang or Qu; falsified shipping documents by concealing the true nature of the shipments and stating that a license was not required for the shipments at the direction of Qu; and then shipped the product to Wang and/or Qu in the PRC, without receiving, or even applying for, the requisite export license from the U.S. Department of Commerce
The complaint also alleges that the China National Packaging Base Construction Company or an individual in Hong Kong wire transferred money to a Wisconsin bank account of Wen Enterprises to pay for the shipments.
The complaint further alleges that Wen was once a Chinese citizen employed at the Chinese Consulates in San Francisco and Los Angeles. The complaint also states that Wen “was recruited and worked for the FBI as informant” during the 1990s and during some of the time period of the illegal export scheme.
In addition to being charged with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and Export Administration Regulations, the defendants are charged with money laundering. If indicted and subsequently convicted of these charges, each faces up to 25 years in prison and substantial fines.
Julie L. Myers, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement, states that these arrests show that “stopping the illegal flow of sensitive commodities to China is a top priority for all of U.S. law enforcement. Robust export enforcement prevents cutting edge technology from going to countries for bad purposes.”
The lead prosecutor in the case is Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica N. O’Neil.
The public is cautioned that a complaint is merely the formal method of returning charges against an individual and does not constitute an inference of his or her guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until such time, if ever, that the government established his or her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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