US sailor who spied for China sentenced to 27 months in prison

A U.S. Navy petty officer who pleaded guilty to providing classified military information to Chinese intelligence services was sentenced Monday to more than two years in prison, the Justice Department said.

Wenheng Zhao26 years old, and another sailor, Jin Chao Weiwere arrested in August on suspicion of spying for the Asian giant.

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In October, Zhao pleaded guilty in federal court in California of conspiring with a foreign intelligence agent and accepting bribes.

This Monday he was sentenced to 27 months in prison and ordered to pay a fine of $5,500.

According to U.S. officials, Zhao, who was stationed at a naval base north of The angelsreceived nearly $15,000 from Chinese intelligence officer between August 2021 and May 2023.

In return, he provided confidential information about the Navy’s operational security, exercises, and critical infrastructure.

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Zhao specifically provided data on a large-scale maritime training exercise in the Pacificas well as electrical diagrams and blueprints of a radar system located in Okinawa, Japan.

“Zhao betrayed his solemn oath to defend his country and endangered those serving in the U.S. military“Declared in a statement the deputy attorney general of U.S, Matthew Olsen.

Wei, who served on the amphibious assault ship USS Essexis accused of delivering China dozens of documents, photos and videos detailing the operation of the ships and their systems.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.