An investigation by American media has uncovered allegations that Chinese-American real estate broker Wanying “Heather” Zhang, who is suspected of acting as an unregistered agent of the Chinese Communist government in the United States, has had business or social connections with individuals involved in international crime investigations.
After reviewing multiple federal court documents, CBS News found that Zhang’s social circle intersects with the Cambodian Prince Group fraud case and a case involving suspected money laundering for a Mexican drug trafficking group.
According to CBS News’ findings, Zhang posted a photo on the Chinese social media platform Xiaohong Book in 2024, showing herself sitting in the driver’s seat of a Bugatti Chiron supercar, claiming it to be a “friend’s luxury car.”
Cryptocurrency trader Wenzhi “Wesley” Fei told CBS News that the Bugatti belonged to his friend Chen Sokly, and he had borrowed it from him. Fei stated that he did not know Zhang and was unaware of Chen Sokly’s business background.
According to the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), an individual referred to as “Co-Conspirator 2” in US indictments is believed to be Chen Sokly, who allegedly served as the “risk control” manager for the Prince Group, using corruption and violence to maintain the group’s dominance among fraudsters.
The US government has accused the Cambodian Prince Group of large-scale online fraud targeting Americans, involving at least $15 billion. They are also suspected of utilizing workers in at least 10 plantation areas in Cambodia for fraudulent activities involving forced labor.
Further investigations by CBS News revealed that Zhang and Fatai Miao are connected to individuals involved in large-scale transnational crime networks. The report also noted that Zhang has had a longstanding relationship with contractor Fatai Miao for several years.
Miao is the registered agent and organizer of Yuanjin Development & Construction LLC. The company’s registered address is in a five-bedroom residence on Interstellar Street in Irvine, California, valued at approximately $4.5 million.
In a criminal affidavit submitted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in 2023, investigators suspected that a money laundering organization collaborating with the Sinaloa Cartel from Mexico had used this residence to hide cash.
According to the affidavit, on March 1, 2023, an individual associated with the organization delivered a red bag to the residence. Based on investigative data and law enforcement experience, investigators suspected that the bag contained illegally obtained US dollars.
The US prosecutors allege that the organization laundered money for the Sinaloa Cartel through unlicensed currency exchange operations. A 2024 indictment involving 24 members of the organization included confiscated photos of stacks of hundred-dollar bills, as well as cars filled with cocaine and methamphetamine.
However, Fatai Miao was not specifically named or charged in the case. Miao’s son told CBS News that his father flew to China on a one-way ticket and is currently still there. He stated that he does not believe his father was aware of any connection between the company’s registered address and the criminal organization.
34-year-old Zhang works in the real estate industry in Irvine, California. Federal investigators have accused her of acting as an agent of the Chinese Communist government within the United States without proper registration. Prosecutors allege that in 2025, she was surveilling the son of the Taiwanese president in Seattle, and that one of the individuals accompanying her at the time was Fatai Miao.
Federal prosecutors further claimed during Zhang’s subsequent trial that she operated an unlicensed currency exchange business, with $190,000 in profits transferred into her bank account in China.