Military Gyroscopes to China

On April 17, 2013, Kevin Zhang, aka Zhao Wei Zhang was sentenced in the Southern District of California to time served and 3 years supervised release. Previously, on February 19, 2013, Zhang pleaded guilty for his role in a conspiracy to export defense articles from the United States to China without a license. On July 30, 2012, Zhang was arrested as he attempted to enter the United States from Canada at a port of entry in Washington state. Zhang had been charged on January 14, 2011 in a sealed indictment in the Southern District of California with one count of conspiracy to export defense articles (specifically G-200 Dynamically Tuned Gyroscopes) from the United States to China without a license or approval from the State Department. According to the indictment, these particular gyroscopes may be used in tactical missile guidance and unmanned aircraft systems. Zhang allegedly instructed individuals in the United States to obtain and export defense articles, including the gyroscopes, to China and allegedly sought to use a courier to smuggle the gyroscopes out of the U.S. The indictment alleged that Zhang, acting on behalf of a client in China, sought to purchase three gyroscopes for $21,000 from an individual in the United States as a prelude to future purchases of gyroscopes. This investigation was conducted by ICE.