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Taiwanese charged in
PRC arms plot
FBI STING: Court documents say the two Taiwanese
were after highly sensitive military technology for the Chinese government,
especially a Hawkeye surveillance plane
By William Lowther / Staff Reporter in Washington
Two Taiwanese appeared in a US federal court in Newark, New Jersey, on
Wednesday, charged with drug dealing and conspiring to illegally buy ˇ§sensitive
defense articlesˇ¨ for Beijing.
According to an FBI statement, Hui Sheng-shen, 45, and Huan Ling-chang, 41, were
trying to acquire military spy drones, E-2C Hawkeye surveillance airplanes and
stealth technology relating to F-22 jets.
They did not make a plea and a trial date has not yet been set.
Shen, known as ˇ§Charlie,ˇ¨ and Chang, known as ˇ§Alice,ˇ¨ could be jailed for life
if they are found guilty on all counts.
Shen told FBI agents he was a logistics expert and Chang said she was a school
teacher.
Both of the accused have been in custody for nearly two months on charges of
conspiring to import 50kg of crystal methamphetamine from Taiwan into the US.
However, the drug charges have now been amended and the pair are charged with
selling 1kg of nearly pure crystal methamphetamine to undercover agents.
During their court appearance, the charges of illegally seeking to export
sensitive US military technology to China were introduced for the first time.
Paul Fishman, US Attorney for the District of New Jersey, said that a drug
trafficking operation and the alleged plot to export ˇ§some of Americaˇ¦s most
sensitive weapons and related technology to Chinaˇ¨ came to light during an
investigation into the importation of counterfeit goods from China.
ˇ§The charges against Shen and Chang illustrate starkly why we do this work and
what is at stake when the security of our ports is breached for any reason,ˇ¨
Fishman said. ˇ§National security isnˇ¦t an a la carte enterprise. The same
conduits that bring knockoff sneakers flood our communities with illegal drugs
and establish dangerous criminal relationships.ˇ¨
Court documents that were unsealed for the first time this week detail an
alleged criminal enterprise with international links.
According to the FBI statement, the documents reveal that Soon Ah Kow, 72, of
Hong Kong, was arrested in Manila in February for brokering international
transactions of illegal goods.
Kow reportedly told undercover FBI agents that Shen and Chang represented
wealthy narcotics dealers.
In September last year, Shen and Chang allegedly asked undercover agents if they
could supply highly sensitive military technology, especially a Hawkeye
reconnaissance aircraft.
The next month, at a meeting in Las Vegas, Shen and Chang allegedly provided an
expanded list of military items they wanted to buy.
During a series of conversations and meetings, the defendants told the
undercover agents that their associates were ˇ§connected to the Chinese
government, working for a Chinese intelligence company, like the CIAˇ¨ and would
be ˇ§using government money to make the purchases.ˇ¨
In February, the pair were arrested when they visited New York and allegedly
photographed a small drone and military manuals provided by undercover agents.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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