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U.S. charges Chinese national for exporting guns and ammo to North Korea
A Chinese national living in California has been arrested and charged by federal law enforcement after he allegedly bought and exported guns and ammunition to North Korea at the direction of North Korean agents who funneled him $2 million to purchase the equipment, according to a newly unsealed criminal complaint.
Shenghua Wen also admitted to trying to obtain military uniforms in an apparent attempt to help North Korean soldiers disguise themselves and conduct a “surprise attack” against South Korea, prosecutors said in an affidavit accompanying the complaint, which was filed on Nov. 26.
Prosecutors alleged Wen came to the U.S. on a student visa in 2012. During a series of interviews earlier this year, he allegedly told investigators that he met with North Korean officials in China before coming to the U.S., and they directed him to procure firearms, ammunition and technology on behalf of Pyongyang.
Wen told the FBI he was “good at smuggling,” court records said, and he allegedly admitted he shipped two containers of guns in 2023 from Long Beach, California, to Hong Kong, where they were then smuggled into North Korea.
Wen is charged with conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions on North Korea, which make it illegal to send American money or goods to the country without permission. An attorney for Wen could not immediately be identified.
The affidavit filed in federal court in California revealed that FBI agents recovered 50,000 rounds of ammunition from Wen’s car, and he allegedly admitted to having bought the ammo at the direction of North Korean officials. Law enforcement also seized a device used to detect chemical threats and a tool that can detect hidden surveillance devices, according to the affidavit. Investigators said they found photos of firearms and equipment that Wen sent in messages with co-conspirators, some of which they included in the affidavit.
Justice Department
The criminal complaint did not detail the complete extent to which Wen allegedly worked on behalf of North Korea’s government, but prosecutors wrote he communicated with his handlers via encrypted messaging apps where the officials directed his conduct and coordinated the smuggling operations.
Wen allegedly bought some of the weapons he sent to North Korea via third-party straw purchasers and told investigators he drove on numerous occasions to Texas to obtain the firearms. To fund the allegedly illegal purchases and international shipments, Wen told authorities the North Korean government funneled about $2 million through a Chinese Bank into bank accounts belonging to Wen’s partner, the criminal complaint said.
“During the interview on September 6, 2024, [Wen] explained that he believed the North Korean government wanted the weapons, ammunition, and other military-related equipment to prepare for an attack against South Korea,” prosecutors wrote, adding his cellphone also contained numerous photos of U.S. military uniforms, pointing to his intent to ship the uniforms overseas.
The Justice Department has charged other individuals living in the U.S. with similar conduct tied to the North Korean government. In May, federal prosecutors accused an Arizona woman of carrying out a scheme to help North Korean IT workers illegally obtain remote employment with American companies. The group allegedly used the identities of more than 60 individuals who lived in the U.S. to generate nearly $7 million for the North Korean government from more than 300 U.S. companies.
Amazon secretly excluded two zip codes from its fastest delivery service while charging nearly 50,000 Prime members who live in the areas its full Prime subscription price, the District of Columbia’s attorney general alleges in a lawsuit filed Wednesday.
Amazon violated consumer protection laws by stopping its quickest delivery service to the two historically lower-income neighborhoods, then misled customers about why their packages were arriving later than advertised when they complained, according to the suit filed in D.C. Superior Court.
The world’s biggest online retailer’s paid subscription service, Amazon Prime, offers two-day delivery for millions of items, as well as next-day or same-day for many other products for $139 a year, or $14.99 a month.
Amazon in June 2022 decided to stop using its fleet of branded trucks to make Prime deliveries to DC zip codes 20019 and 20020, servicing them instead with third-party delivery services like UPS and the U.S. Postal Service. The company knew the decision would result in significantly slower deliveries for the areas, but did not tell existing or prospective customers, the suit alleges.
Amazon informed the attorney general’s office that the change came as the result of safety concerns for its drivers, the attorney general said. Yet the company was legally obligated to disclose the change to customers.
“Amazon is charging tens of thousands of hard-working Ward 7 and 8 residents for an expedited delivery service it promises but does not provide. While Amazon has every right to make operational changes, it cannot covertly decide that a dollar in one ZIP code is worth less than a dollar in another,” D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb stated in a news release.”We’re suing to stop this deceptive conduct and make sure District residents get what they’re paying for.”
Amazon Prime two-day delivery
Last year, the rest of the city’s Prime members received packages within two days of checkout 75% of the time, but those in the impacted ZIP codes received their orders within two days just 24% of the time, according to the suit.
Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia
Amazon dismissed as “categorically false” claims that its business practices are discriminatory or deceptive.
“We want to be able to deliver as fast as we possibly can to every zip code across the country, however, at the same time we must put the safety of delivery drivers first,” an Amazon spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The spokesperson added, “In the zip codes in question, there have been specific and targeted acts against drivers delivering Amazon packages. We made the deliberate choice to adjust our operations, including delivery routes and times, for the sole reason of protecting the safety of drivers.”
The company said it’s clear with customers about expected delivery dates. “And we’re always transparent with customers during the shopping journey and checkout process about when, exactly, they can expect their orders to arrive,” the spokesperson said.
Amazon would like to work with the attorney general’s office to reduce crime and improve safety in those areas, the spokesperson stated. “Nevertheless, we will proceed in the process and demonstrate that providing fast and accurate delivery times and prioritizing the same of customers and delivery partners are not mutually exclusive.”
The lawsuit is not the first time Amazon has been accused of providing discriminatory service.
A Bloomberg analysis in 2016 found that Amazon excluded predominantly black ZIP codes to varying degrees from same-day delivery in six major cites. Amazon at the time said the issue had nothing to do with race.
And two years later, the since-discontinued Amazon Restaurants delivery service excluded the same D.C. neighborhoods that are the focus of the Prime delivery lawsuit. The company told local news at the time that it was working to bring more eateries online.
Pope Francis has received the first-ever all-electric popemobile from automaker Mercedes-Benz.
The open-top vehicle, which for the last 45 years has been manufactured by the German luxury automaker, is used by Pope Francis to greet pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square during general audiences and other papal ceremonies. The company’s CEO Ola Kallenius personally handed over the new model to the pope on Wednesday at the Vatican.
“With the new Popemobile, Pope Francis is the first pope to be traveling in a fully electric Mercedes-Benz when making public appearances,” Kallenius said in a statement. “This is a special honor for our company, and I would like to thank His Holiness for his trust.”
Pool photo/Aigav
The vehicle, a modified version of the company’s G-class mid-size luxury SUV, is in classic pearl-white, and has been developed in close cooperation with the Vatican tailored to the needs of the pope, the company said in a statement. The engine has been particularly adapted for low speeds; the seat has been heated and elevated for better visibility; and a grab bar provides stability when the Pope is standing.
“Every detail is perfection,” Kallenius told Reuters. It took “hundreds of hours of craftsmanship … to build a one-of-a-kind popemobile,” he said.
Francis has made care for the environment a priority of his papacy and has used electric cars on some of his foreign trips, but this is the first time an all-electric vehicle will be used. In 2011, the pope opted to use a plug-in hybrid as the electric version was not yet fast enough to bring the pontiff to safety in an emergency.
The first “official” popemobile was a bespoke Mercedes-Benz Nurburg 460 Pullman given to Pope Pius XI by the company in 1930. The luxurious model had silk carpeting and embossed doves decorating the interior. Subsequent popemobiles have included a 600 Pullman Landaulet and 300 SEL for Pope Jon XXIII; a modified G Class for Pope John Paul II; and the previous popemobile, used by both Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, another Mercedes-Benz M Class.
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