California man arrested for allegedly shipping weapons to North Korea

CA man charged with sending weapons to North Korea

An Inland Empire man has been charged with shipping weapons to North Korea. The man allegedly believed the weapons were going to be used for a surprise attack on South Korea.

ONTARIO, Calif. - A Chinese national living in Ontario was arrested Tuesday on federal charges alleging he schemed to illegally ship weapons to North Korea for use by the secretive communist country's military in a "surprise attack on South Korea," officials announced Tuesday.

Shenghua Wen, 41, and his co-conspirators exported at least two shipments of firearms and ammunition to North Korea last year by concealing the items inside shipping containers that were shipped from Long Beach through Hong Kong to North Korea, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday in Los Angeles federal court.

Officials said that on Aug. 14, federal agents seized from Wen's home two devices that he admitted he obtained to send to the North Korean government for its military use. The items include a chemical threat identification device and a hand-held receiver that eavesdrops on transmissions, court papers show.

Wen -- who allegedly outstayed a student visa in 2012 to remain illegally in the United States -- is charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a felony that carries a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison.

He was expected to make his initial appearance Tuesday afternoon in federal court in downtown Los Angeles, and could be arraigned in the coming weeks, officials said.

"The significance of this arrest and discovery of this scheme cannot be overstated," said Akil Davis, the FBI's Los Angeles assistant director in charge. "Not only did the investigative team prevent additional restricted items going to the North Korean regime, but they gathered valuable intelligence for the United States and our allies."

According to an affidavit filed with the complaint, Wen violated federal law and United States sanctions against North Korea by obtaining firearms, ammunition and export-controlled technology with the intention of illegally exporting them. On Sept. 6, federal prosecutors said, law enforcement seized about 50,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition that Wen allegedly obtained to send to North Korea.

"In light of the extraordinary threat North Korea poses, there must be approval from the U.S. government to ship such items to North Korea," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said during a news conference Tuesday, adding that North Korea "engaged in a scheme to circumvent those restrictions."

Estrada alleged that before leaving China to come to the United States on a student visa, Wen met with North Korean government representatives in China and planned the scheme. North Korea subsequently sent him at least $2 million to pay for materials and shipping costs, Estrada said.

In the U.S., Wen purchased a business to obtain weapons and other items to export to North Korea, prosecutors say. Those items included military uniforms "to help conduct a surprise attack on South Korea," Estrada said Wen was told.

"The conduct alleged in this complaint is chilling," Estrada said, alleging that North Korea was "running an operative in this country to obtain technology ... to help conduct an attack on one of our allies, South Korea."

Davis said the federal investigation into Wen's alleged activities was "a blow" to North Korea.

Prosecutors contend that this year, from January to April, Wen sent emails and text messages to a U.S.-based broker about obtaining a civilian plane engine. There also were several text messages on Wen's iPhone concerning price negotiation for the plane and its engine, the DOJ alleges.