Conspirators brought $200M in Chinese contraband through L.A. ports, feds say

Yahoo

27-01-2025

Nine people are facing federal charges for their roles in an alleged conspiracy to 'smuggle hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of counterfeit and other illegal goods from China into the United States via the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach,' the United States Justice Department said.
The accused include executives of logistic companies, warehouse owners and truck drivers who worked together to import counterfeit goods and evade inspections in 2023 and 2024, the DOJ said in a news release on Monday.
'The defendants allegedly took containers flagged for off-site secondary inspection, unloaded the contraband, then stuffed the targeted containers with filler cargo to deceive customs officials and evade law enforcement,' officials explained.
That scheme was enabled by the use of false customs seals, officials said.
'Co-conspirators broke the security seals on the shipping containers and removed the contraband from inside,' the release said. 'Then, they affixed counterfeit security seals onto the containers to conceal that cargo had been removed from them.'
Eight of the nine people involved have been taken into custody — seven on Friday, one on Saturday — and the ninth remains a fugitive, officials said. The accused are:
Weijun Zheng, 57, aka 'Sonic,' of Diamond Bar, the lone fugitive in the case, who controls several logistics companies operating in the Los Angeles area
Hexi Wang, 32, of El Monte, who manages K&P International Logistics LLC, a City of Industry-based company that hires commercial truckers to transport shipping containers from the Port of Los Angeles
Jin 'Mark' Liu, 42, of Irvine, the owner of K&P International Logistics LLC and who managed the finances of one of the warehouses where contraband was unloaded and issued payments to truck drivers who transported smuggled goods
Dong 'Liam' Lin, 31, of Hacienda Heights, who – along with Zheng – controlled and operated one of the contraband warehouses
Marck Anthony Gomez, 49, of West Covina, the owner and operator of Fannum Trucks LLC, a West Covina-based company that coordinated the movement of shipping containers from the Port of Los Angeles, including large shipments of contraband smuggled into the United States from China
Andy Estuardo Castillo Perez, 32, of Apple Valley, a driver for M4 Transportation Inc., a Carson-based company that transports shipping containers from the Port of Los Angeles
Jesse James Rosales, 41, of Apple Valley, who coordinated truckers from the ports to warehouses
Daniel Acosta Hoffman, 41, of Hacienda Heights, worked with Rosales to bring cargo containers from the Port of Los Angeles to warehouses
Galvin Biao Liufu, 33, of Ontario, directed and managed truck drivers to bring the contraband into the warehouses
Authorities said the investigation yielded $130 million in seized contraband like luxury handbags, shoes and perfumes, though at least $200 million worth of goods is believed to have been smuggled through the ports by this group.
This group is not alone in using these types of tactics, however. Federal officials estimate that about $1.3 billion in contraband has been seized during seal-swapping schemes like this one.
'Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Los Angeles and its partners are committed to enforcing customs laws and practices, facilitating legitimate trade, and protecting the integrity of the nation's supply chain,' said HSI Los Angeles Special Agent in Charge Eddy Wang. 'The $1.3 billion dollars' worth of contraband seized during the investigation into this type of scheme illuminates how complex smuggling schemes try to exploit our legitimate trade practices and the American consumer.'
'Secure seaports and borders are critical to our national security,' added Acting United States Attorney Joseph T. McNally. 'The smuggling of huge amounts of contraband from China through our nation's largest port hurts American businesses and consumers.'
In this specific case, the seven arrested on Friday have pleaded not guilty to all charges, while the eighth is expected to be arraigned soon.
The indictment includes 15 counts, and if convicted on all of them, the defendants could be sentenced to five years in federal prison for each conspiracy count, up to 10 years in federal prison for each count of breaking customs seals and up to 20 years in prison for each smuggling count.
The trial is expected to begin on March 18.
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