Navy Sailor May Spend Life In Prison After Selling Military Secrets For $12,000

The United States military has been infiltrated by the CCP.

A Navy sailor may spend the rest of his life in prison after he was found guilty of selling military secrets to China.

Jinchao Wei, 25, was convicted of espionage, conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act, and several other charges.

According to court documents, Wei sold sensitive information to China for only $12,000.

Fox News covered the story more in-depth:

A Navy sailor may face life in prison after a San Diego jury found him guilty of selling military secrets to China on Thursday.

Prosecutors said Jinchao “Patrick” Wei, 25, used his position as a machinist’s mate on the amphibious assault ship USS Essex at Naval Base San Diego to collect sensitive information and offer it to a Chinese intelligence officer who recruited him in February 2022. Wei held a security clearance and had access to information about the weapons systems aboard the Essex.

In exchange, the officer paid Wei $12,000 over a year and a half.

A jury convicted Wei on six of seven charges: espionage, conspiracy to commit espionage, conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and three counts of violating the Arms Export Control Act.

The DOJ provided more details on We’s conviction:

According to evidence presented at trial, Wei was a machinist’s mate for the amphibious assault ship U.S.S. Essex. He also held a U.S. security clearance and had access to sensitive national defense information about the ship’s various systems.

The evidence introduced at trial showed that Wei was approached in February 2022 via social media by someone who claimed to be a naval enthusiast. The individual was in reality a Chinese intelligence officer. Between February 2022 and his arrest in August 2023, as their relationship developed, Wei, at the request of the officer, sent extensive information about the Essex, including photographs, videos, and about its weapons. He also sent detailed information about other U.S. Navy ships that he took from restricted U.S. Navy computer systems. In exchange for this information, the intelligence officer paid Wei more than $12,000 over 18 months.

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During the trial, the government presented evidence including conversations and other messages that Wei exchanged with his Chinese handler. These communications showed the efforts they made to cover their tracks, the tasks issued by his handler, and how Wei was paid for his work.

In addition to the two espionage charges, Wei was convicted of four counts of conspiring to violate and violating the Arms Export Control Act. That law prohibits individuals from willfully exporting technical data related to a defense article without a license from the Department of State. The government presented evidence that Wei conspired with his Chinese handler to export certain technical information which required a license for export.
The FBI and NCIS investigated the case, with valuable assistance from the U.S. Department of State and Transportation Security Administration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Parmley for the Southern District of California and Trial Attorney Adam Barry of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.

How many more U.S. military personnel are selling secrets to China?