Restricted Electronic Components to China

On January 20, 2009, Michael Ming Zhang and Policarpo Coronado Gamboa were arrested pursuant to indictments in the Central District of California charging them with separate schemes involving the illegal export of controlled U.S. electronic items to China and the illegal trafficking of counterfeit electronic components from China into the United States. Zhang was the president of J.J. Electronics, a Rancho Cucamonga, CA, business, while Gamboa owned and operated Sereton Technology, Inc., a Foothill Ranch, CA, business. Zhang allegedly exported to China dual-use electronic items that have uses in U.S. Army battle tanks. He also allegedly imported and sold in the United States roughly 4,300 Cisco electronic components bearing counterfeit marks from China. Gamboa is charged with conspiring with Zhang to import Sony electronic components with counterfeit marks from China for distribution in the United States. On July 9, 2009, Gamboa pleaded guilty to one count of the indictment and was later sentenced to 5 years probation and was ordered to pay $13,600 restitution to Sony Electronics. On July 6, 2009, Zhang pleaded guilty to count one in each of the indictments. He was sentenced on May 17, 2010 to 18 months in prison, 3 years supervised release, $200 special assessment and was ordered to pay Sony Electronics $226,072 and Cisco Systems, Inc. $5,451. The case was investigated by the FBI, BIS, DCIS, ICE, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, in conjunction with the EAGLE Task Force in the Central District of California.