A US Navy sailor was convicted Wednesday of espionage after a jury found him guilty of selling sensitive information to a Chinese intelligence officer.
The sailor, Jinchao Wei — who was also found guilty of conspiracy to commit espionage and “unlawful export of, and conspiracy to export, technical data related to defense articles” — will be sentenced on December 1, according to a statement from the Justice Department.
The jury acquitted Wei on a charge of naturalization fraud.
“The defendant’s actions represent an egregious betrayal of the trust placed in him as a member of the U.S. military,” Adam Gordon, US attorney for the Southern District of California, said in the statement. “By trading military secrets to the People’s Republic of China for cash, he jeopardized not only the lives of his fellow sailors but also the security of the entire nation and our allies. The jury’s verdict serves as a crucial reminder that the Department of Justice will vigorously prosecute traitors.”
Wei was arrested on August 2, 2023, as he arrived for work at Naval Base San Diego, where he served as a machinist’s mate on the USS Essex amphibious assault ship. Machinist’s mates are a class of engineers and are responsible for operating, maintaining and repairing ship equipment.
During his first appearance in court a day later, federal defenders had submitted a not guilty plea on his behalf. According to Wednesday’s statement, however, Wei confessed to selling technical and mechanical manuals in his post-arrest interview, during which he told the FBI, “I’m screwed.”
Wei was recruited by the Chinese intelligence officer through social media in February 2022, the Justice Department said. Between March 2022 and his arrest, Wei sent photos and videos of the USS Essex to the Chinese intelligence officer, along with the locations of several ships at the San Diego naval base.
Wei also sent “thousands of pages of technical and operational information” that were stored on restricted-access Navy computer systems, the Justice Department said. He received more than $12,000 over the course of 18 months in exchange for the information he shared.
Around the time of Wei’s arrest, another US Navy sailor in California was also arrested for selling sensitive military information.
Wenheng Zhao, who pleaded guilty to conspiring with a Chinese intelligence officer and receiving a bribe, was sentenced early last year to more than two years in prison.
CNN’s Natasha Bertrand contributed to this report.
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