On Monday, August 10, 29-year-old Chinese citizen Dingwei Chen pleaded guilty in the federal court in Salt Lake City, USA, admitting to violating the Arms Export Control Act. He attempted to illegally purchase military-grade satellite communication equipment for export to China.
According to a statement from the Department of Justice, U.S. District Judge David Sam accepted Chen’s plea and will announce the sentencing on October 19. Chen faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.
The prosecution stated that Chen tried to acquire military-grade satellite modems and radio equipment produced by a U.S. company for the US military. Such equipment, as per the news release, requires approval from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Defense Trade Control and cannot be legally exported from the U.S. without this approval, which is typically not granted to China for military exports.
Court records show that Chen, along with others in China, signed contracts with a U.S. subsidiary of a Swiss defense company to purchase 10 modems, including communication systems from companies such as L3Harris, Viasat, and Comtech.
These products are subject to strict export controls under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, and licenses for exports to China are set as “presumption of denial.”
The group discussed multiple smuggling routes, initially considering transshipment through Switzerland, then picking up in Saipan, and eventually deciding on smuggling the equipment through Mexico.
Federal agents mentioned that Chen proposed Saipan as a clandestine meeting point and told an undercover agent posing as a supplier, “I’ll arrange for personnel to pick up the goods in Saipan.”
In encrypted messages, Chen expressed concerns about meeting within the U.S., writing in a text, “You know, our goods are illegal,” and “Saipan is not a safe meeting point.”
Despite these concerns, Chen still planned to travel to Saipan before October 6, 2025. Department of Homeland Security databases confirmed his travel arrangements matching information disclosed in prior conversations with the undercover agent, including hotel bookings and associated email addresses.
Prosecutors mentioned that after paying an initial deposit of over $40,000, Chen and his associates switched to using cryptocurrency, noting that a “cold wallet is essentially an anonymous bank account,” with transactions made through a cold wallet being “private and untraceable.”
Ultimately, they purchased 10 modems valued at around $30,000 worth of Tether (a type of cryptocurrency) and communicated through encrypted applications to avoid detection.
Court records indicate Chen claimed this transaction was only an initial deal, with plans to acquire more military equipment valued at over $18 million.
Chen was arrested on Saipan on October 6, 2025. The case was subsequently handed over for trial in Utah.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg stated, “Chen attempted to transfer sensitive U.S. military technology to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which could potentially be used against us in the future.”
Director of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service James R. Ives emphasized the critical importance of advanced communication systems for protecting U.S. military personnel and vowed that the agency would “vigorously investigate” those attempting to acquire and illegally export sensitive technology, as such technology could pose future threats to the U.S. military.
Acting Special Agent in Charge Spiros Karabinas of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New Jersey, emphasized that this guilty plea highlights the “severe consequences” individuals attempting to illegally obtain, export, or transfer sensitive U.S. military technology will face.