A United States Navy sailor was sentenced for spying for China

Jinchao Wei, a United States Navy sailor based in California, was found guilty of espionage for selling military secrets to a Chinese intelligence agent who recruited him through social media.

Wei, 25 years old, also known as Patrick Wei, was convicted on six counts, including espionage, conspiracy to commit espionage, and illegal export of classified data about United States Navy vessels.

Wei was arrested in August 2023 when he arrived at his workplace on the amphibious assault ship USS Essex. Although he was a naturalized United States citizen, he had been recruited by a Chinese intelligence officer in February 2022, while he was still in the process of obtaining citizenship.

The Chinese agent initially posed as a naval enthusiast employed at the state-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation, aiming to gain his trust.

During the week-long trial, prosecutors presented compelling evidence, including phone conversations, text messages, and audio recordings that showed how Wei maintained communication with his Chinese contact, whom he called "Big Brother Andy."

To keep the relationship secret, Wei used multiple encrypted applications and accepted payments through covert means. He even received a new phone and a computer from the Chinese spy.

The jury heard a key conversation between Wei and his mother in which he confessed to leaking secrets. "Other Chinese in the Navy are trying to make extra money driving taxis. I simply leak several secrets," he wrote.

To which his mother replied: "Good job!" This conversation was presented as evidence that Wei understood the gravity of his actions.

Wei, who had security clearance as part of his position as a machinery technician, had access to sensitive information about USS Essex and other Pacific Fleet vessels.

For 18 months, he sent photographs, videos, ship locations, descriptions of defensive systems, and technical problems of the vessels, in exchange for more than USD 12,000 paid by the Chinese agent.

After the verdict was announced, federal prosecutor Adam Gordon described Wei's actions as "a heinous betrayal of the trust placed in him as a member of the United States armed forces." He added that his actions endangered the lives of other sailors, as well as the national security of the United States and its allies.

Wei will be sentenced on December 1 and faces a possible life sentence. Neither he nor his attorney have offered public comments so far.

This case was not isolated. In 2023, Petty Officer Wenheng Zhao was also arrested, who accepted more than USD 14,800 in exchange for sending classified photos and videos to another Chinese intelligence officer.

Among the documents Zhao transmitted were plans for large-scale maritime exercises in the Pacific, operational orders, and electrical diagrams of the ground/air radar system (G/ATOR) located in Okinawa, Japan. Zhao was previously convicted and sentenced to 27 months in prison