Woman sentenced for conspiring to export defense technology to People’s Republic of China

A California woman was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison on Friday for conspiring to illegally export fighter jet engines, along with unmanned aerial vehicles and related technical data, to the People’s Republic of China.

The investigation was handled by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit and the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Criminal Investigative Services.

The individual, 45-year-old Wenxia Man, aka Wency Man, of San Diego, was formally convicted on June 9 by a federal jury for conspiring to export and cause the export of defense articles without a required license.

Investigators found that between March 2011 and June 2013, Man attempted to export sensitive defense equipment, including Pratt & Whitney F135-PW-100 engines used in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, Pratt & Whitney F119-PW-100 turbofan engines used in the F-22 Raptor fighter jet, General Electric F110-GE-132 engines designed for the F-16 fighter jet, the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper/Predator B unmanned aerial vehicle, and technical data for each of the engines.

Man was referred to as a “technology spy” who worked in conjunction with the Chinese military to copy items from other militaries, with a focus on stealth technology.

The trial was prosecuted by Michael Walleisa, assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Thea D.R. Kendler, trial attorney at the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.