Two US Marines accused of providing intelligence to China
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The two California marines have been charged separately with passing sensitive intelligence to China, but it is not clear whether the bribes were paid to both by the same Chinese intelligence officer as part of a larger conspiracy.
San Diego. Two US Marines were charged on Thursday with providing sensitive military information to China. This information includes information related to maneuvers, naval operations and important technical items. The two California marines have been charged separately with passing sensitive intelligence to China, but it is not clear whether the bribes were paid to both by the same Chinese intelligence officer as part of a larger conspiracy. Federal officials declined to say at a news conference in San Diego whether the accused Marines knew each other.
The marines pleaded not guilty in federal courts in San Diego and Los Angeles. Both were ordered to be kept in custody till their hearing on August 8 in their respective cities. US officials have raised concerns for years about alleged espionage by the Chinese government. Criminal cases have been filed against several Beijing intelligence agencies over the years. These institutions are alleged to have stolen sensitive government and commercial information through illegal hacking. Jinchao Wei, a 22-year-old Navy SEAL stationed on the USS Essex in San Diego, was arrested on Wednesday while boarding the ship. He has been accused of sharing information about weapons and aircraft on the Essex and other warships.
Prosecutors claimed that Wei had received bribes of US$10,000 to 15,000 over the past year in exchange for providing intelligence to China. If convicted, he could be sentenced to life imprisonment. At the same time, between August 2021 and May 2023, 26-year-old Wenheng Zhao, stationed at the Naval Base Ventura County, north of San Diego, was asked to share photos and videos of important equipment in addition to information related to US naval exercise plans and operational orders from a Chinese official between August 2021 and May 2023. In return for which he allegedly received a bribe of US$15,000.
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