A Taiwanese couple plotted to sell top secret plans for a small US military drone — used for espionage and reconnaissance — to China, a court in Newark, New Jersey, heard this week.
Shen Hui-sheng, 47, and Huan Lin-chang, 43, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and conspiracy to import illegal drugs.
They are scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 5 next year and could each get 20 years in prison and a US$1 million fine.
US military analysts said outside the court that Beijing may have wanted to launch the “RQ-11B” drone — codenamed Raven — from ships and use it to monitor the islands and atolls over which China makes disputed claims in the East and South China seas.
The hand-launched Raven can fly for two hours and has a range of about 16km. It has a wingspan of 1.3m, normally operates at 152m or lower, and is equipped with sensors and cameras that can be used by day or night.
Shen, known as “Charlie,” and Chang, known as “Alice,” were tricked by an FBI “sting” in February 2012 to travel to New York from their home in Taiwan and take delivery of classified manuals for the drone.
The two also plotted to import the illegal narcotic crystal methamphetamine from Taiwan to the US and the undercover FBI agents agreed to pay US$70,000 for 1kg of the drug.
Shen and Chang supplied the FBI agents with a sophisticated code to use when communicating with them in Taipei, and opened a bank account in Hong Kong to receive and disburse funds for the venture.
They told the FBI they were working for a special advisor to a high-ranking Chinese government official.
The two claimed they could smuggle drone parts and drone technology out of the country using techniques they had learned in the narcotics trade.
According to court papers, Shen told the FBI he was a resident of Taiwan and portrayed himself as a logistics expert able to obtain and transmit contraband items throughout the world.
Chang also said that she was a resident of Taiwan, but identified herself as a schoolteacher fluent in English, Spanish, Mandarin and “Fukinese,” also known as Hoklo.
Shen said that he could use frogmen to swim out into the ocean with drone parts and deliver them to a semi-submersible vehicle that would in turn take them to a ship anchored kilometers offshore.
During a meeting with the undercover agents, one agent said that he would prefer not to make money on something that would hurt the US.
Shen replied: “I think that all items would hurt America.”
Both Shen and Chang told the undercover agents that their associates were connected to the Chinese government, working for a Chinese intelligence company similar to the CIA and would be using government money to make the purchases.
“Their status is a bit special, so in order to travel to the UK or US, all developed countries, for them it’s hard…” Chang said.
Shen interrupted: “They are spies. They find it very hard to get a visa. They cannot go to the US or UK.”
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their
RSS