Central District of California US Navy Sailor Pleads Guilty to Transmitting Sensitive US Military Information to Chinese Intelligence Officer United States Department of Justice
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ppLOS ANGELES A United States Navy service member pleaded guilty today to federal felony offenses and admitted he transmitted sensitive US military information to an intelligence officer from the Peoples Republic of China in exchange for bribery paymentsppPetty Officer Wenheng Zhao 26 also known as Thomas Zhao of Monterey Park pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring with the intelligence officer and one count of receiving a bribeppZhao who worked at Naval Base Ventura County in Port Hueneme and held a US security clearance admitted he engaged in a corrupt scheme to collect and transmit sensitive US military information to the intelligence officer in violation of his official dutiesppBetween August 2021 and at least May 2023 Zhao admitted receiving at least 14866 in at least 14 separate bribe payments from the intelligence officer In exchange for the illicit payments Zhao surreptitiously collected and transmitted to the intelligence officer sensitive nonpublic information regarding US Navy operational security military trainings and exercises and critical infrastructure Zhao admitted he entered restricted military and naval installations to collect and record this informationppZhao specifically admitted to transmitting plans for a largescale maritime training exercise in the Pacific theatre operational orders and electrical diagrams and blueprints for a GroundAir Task Oriented Radar system located in Okinawa JapanppZhao further admitted to using sophisticated encrypted communication methods to transmit the information destroying evidence and concealing his relationship with the intelligence officer Zhaos conduct violated his official duties to protect such information and the oath he swore to protect the United States ppOfficer Zhao betrayed his country and the men and women of the US Navy by accepting bribes from a foreign adversary said United States Attorney Martin Estrada While he and the PRC officer he served took great pains to conceal their corrupt scheme investigators were vigilant in uncovering this shameful plot Todays resolution requiring Zhao to plead guilty to all charges against him shows that we will act swiftly and decisively to protect our nation from those who seek to undermine our securityppThe intelligence services of the Peoples Republic of China actively target clearance holders across the military seeking to entice them with money to provide sensitive government information said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G Olsen When contacted by his coconspirator rather than reporting it to the Navy the Defendant chose greed over protecting the national security of the United States He is now being held accountable for his crimes To others tempted to put personal profit ahead of patriotic duty know that we are committed to identifying you and bringing you to justiceppMr Zhaos admission makes it clear that he abandoned the oath he swore to uphold by providing sensitive information to a US adversary in exchange for cash said Donald Alway the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBIs Los Angeles Field Office Zhao put his fellow servicemen at risk when he yielded to overtures from the Chinese government a nation actively targeting Americans who have access to state secrets Im proud of the strong partnerships and hard work that resulted in todays successful outcomeppNCIS would like to once again thank our partners at the FBI and Department of Justice for their continued assistance in bringing this case to a quick resolution said AD Cruz Jr Acting Special Agent in Charge of Naval Criminal Investigative Service Office of Special Projects The swift action by the Department of Justice in prosecuting this case should serve as a warning to anyone who willingly or through willful negligence attempt to compromise the Department of the Navys sensitive information or the security of our warfighters No matter how long it takes we will find you and hold you to account To those still working to assist our adversaries find your nearest NCIS or FBI office and cooperate before we come for youppZhao pleaded guilty before United States District Judge R Gary Klausner who scheduled a January 8 2024 sentencing hearing As a result of todays guilty pleas Zhao faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison five years for the conspiracy count and 15 years for the bribery charge Zhao has been in custody since his arrest on August 3ppThe FBIs Counterintelligence and Cyber Division of the Los Angeles Field Office and NCIS conducted the investigation IRS Criminal Investigation provided substantial assistanceppAssistant United States Attorneys Annamartine Salick Sarah Gerdes Christine Ro and Kathrynne Seiden of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section are prosecuting this case with assistance from Ryan Waters of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section The Counterintelligence and Export Control Section at the Department of Justice is providing substantial assistanceppThom Mrozek
Director of Media Relations
thommrozekusdojgov
213 8946947ppA San Fernando Valley man who planned the bombing of a political rally in Long Beach in 2019 was sentenced today to 25 years in federal prisonppA federal jury this afternoon convicted a San Fernando Valley man for attempting to bomb a rally in Long Beach for the purpose of causing mass casualtiesppLaw enforcement today arrested an employee of a Department of Defense contractor on a criminal complaint alleging he unlawfully sold United States Air Force technical data to an Orange CountyppCentral District of California
312 North Spring Street
Suite 1200
Los Angeles California 90012ppPhone 2138942400
Fax 2138940141ppStay ConnectedppppHave a question about Government Servicesp
Official websites use gov
A gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States
pp
Secure gov websites use HTTPS
A lock
Lock
A locked padlock
or https means youve safely connected to the gov website Share sensitive information only on official secure websites
ppLOS ANGELES A United States Navy service member pleaded guilty today to federal felony offenses and admitted he transmitted sensitive US military information to an intelligence officer from the Peoples Republic of China in exchange for bribery paymentsppPetty Officer Wenheng Zhao 26 also known as Thomas Zhao of Monterey Park pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring with the intelligence officer and one count of receiving a bribeppZhao who worked at Naval Base Ventura County in Port Hueneme and held a US security clearance admitted he engaged in a corrupt scheme to collect and transmit sensitive US military information to the intelligence officer in violation of his official dutiesppBetween August 2021 and at least May 2023 Zhao admitted receiving at least 14866 in at least 14 separate bribe payments from the intelligence officer In exchange for the illicit payments Zhao surreptitiously collected and transmitted to the intelligence officer sensitive nonpublic information regarding US Navy operational security military trainings and exercises and critical infrastructure Zhao admitted he entered restricted military and naval installations to collect and record this informationppZhao specifically admitted to transmitting plans for a largescale maritime training exercise in the Pacific theatre operational orders and electrical diagrams and blueprints for a GroundAir Task Oriented Radar system located in Okinawa JapanppZhao further admitted to using sophisticated encrypted communication methods to transmit the information destroying evidence and concealing his relationship with the intelligence officer Zhaos conduct violated his official duties to protect such information and the oath he swore to protect the United States ppOfficer Zhao betrayed his country and the men and women of the US Navy by accepting bribes from a foreign adversary said United States Attorney Martin Estrada While he and the PRC officer he served took great pains to conceal their corrupt scheme investigators were vigilant in uncovering this shameful plot Todays resolution requiring Zhao to plead guilty to all charges against him shows that we will act swiftly and decisively to protect our nation from those who seek to undermine our securityppThe intelligence services of the Peoples Republic of China actively target clearance holders across the military seeking to entice them with money to provide sensitive government information said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G Olsen When contacted by his coconspirator rather than reporting it to the Navy the Defendant chose greed over protecting the national security of the United States He is now being held accountable for his crimes To others tempted to put personal profit ahead of patriotic duty know that we are committed to identifying you and bringing you to justiceppMr Zhaos admission makes it clear that he abandoned the oath he swore to uphold by providing sensitive information to a US adversary in exchange for cash said Donald Alway the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBIs Los Angeles Field Office Zhao put his fellow servicemen at risk when he yielded to overtures from the Chinese government a nation actively targeting Americans who have access to state secrets Im proud of the strong partnerships and hard work that resulted in todays successful outcomeppNCIS would like to once again thank our partners at the FBI and Department of Justice for their continued assistance in bringing this case to a quick resolution said AD Cruz Jr Acting Special Agent in Charge of Naval Criminal Investigative Service Office of Special Projects The swift action by the Department of Justice in prosecuting this case should serve as a warning to anyone who willingly or through willful negligence attempt to compromise the Department of the Navys sensitive information or the security of our warfighters No matter how long it takes we will find you and hold you to account To those still working to assist our adversaries find your nearest NCIS or FBI office and cooperate before we come for youppZhao pleaded guilty before United States District Judge R Gary Klausner who scheduled a January 8 2024 sentencing hearing As a result of todays guilty pleas Zhao faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison five years for the conspiracy count and 15 years for the bribery charge Zhao has been in custody since his arrest on August 3ppThe FBIs Counterintelligence and Cyber Division of the Los Angeles Field Office and NCIS conducted the investigation IRS Criminal Investigation provided substantial assistanceppAssistant United States Attorneys Annamartine Salick Sarah Gerdes Christine Ro and Kathrynne Seiden of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section are prosecuting this case with assistance from Ryan Waters of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section The Counterintelligence and Export Control Section at the Department of Justice is providing substantial assistanceppThom Mrozek
Director of Media Relations
thommrozekusdojgov
213 8946947ppA San Fernando Valley man who planned the bombing of a political rally in Long Beach in 2019 was sentenced today to 25 years in federal prisonppA federal jury this afternoon convicted a San Fernando Valley man for attempting to bomb a rally in Long Beach for the purpose of causing mass casualtiesppLaw enforcement today arrested an employee of a Department of Defense contractor on a criminal complaint alleging he unlawfully sold United States Air Force technical data to an Orange CountyppCentral District of California
312 North Spring Street
Suite 1200
Los Angeles California 90012ppPhone 2138942400
Fax 2138940141ppStay ConnectedppppHave a question about Government Servicesp
