A man living in Ontario, California, was arrested in a North Korean arms smuggling operation that involved shipments of weapons from Long Beach, federal authorities said Tuesday.
Federal agents detained suspected operative Shenghua Wen, a 41-year-old registered Chinese national, on an expired student visa earlier this year.
“The North Korea officials sent Mr. Wen at least $2 million to pay for obtaining these materials and also to pay for the shipping costs,” said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada.
Wen was expected to make his initial appearance Tuesday afternoon in federal court in downtown Los Angeles, and could be arraigned in the coming weeks.
“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.”
On Aug. 14, 2024, federal agents raided Wen’s Ontario …