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U.S. Department of Justice
The Department of Justice today announced criminal charges in three cases filed by three U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in connection with the multi-agency Disruptive Technology Strike Force.
The Strike Force is jointly led by the Departments of Justice and Commerce to counter efforts by hostile nation states to illicitly obtain sensitive U.S. technology to advance authoritarian regimes and facilitate human rights abuses. Launched in February 2023, the Strike Force’s operations have uncovered charges against 34 defendants in 24 cases involving alleged export control violations, smuggling, and theft of trade secrets by actors with ties to Russia, China, and Iran.
The cases announced today have taken place over a period of several weeks and culminated in the arrest today of a Russian national for allegedly attempting to illegally export electronics for use in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Russia. Other cases have included spear phishing of U.S.-based scientists by employees of a Chinese state-owned defense company, and the smuggling of laser welding machines used in nuclear weapons production into Russia.
“The prosecution of these cases by the Disruptive Technology Task Force reflects a joint effort across five government agencies focused on the common goal of preventing the transfer of sensitive cutting-edge technology to Iran, China and Russia,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division. “Through the Task Force’s work, the Department of Justice will continue to do everything in its power to prevent cutting-edge technology from falling into the hands of our adversaries and protect our national security.”
“We launched the Disruptive Technology Task Force a year and a half ago to further the important mission of protecting American technology,” said Commerce Department Under Secretary for Export Control Matthew S. Axelrod. “As today’s announcement makes clear, our efforts to protect sensitive American technology have resulted in 24 criminal indictments, millions of dollars in administrative fines, and multiple Entity List additions to date, and we will continue to be relentless and unrelenting.”
“We all know that the threats we face today are more complex and severe than ever before,” said FBI Deputy Director of the National Security Division Robert Wells. “The best way, and the only way, to stay ahead of current and emerging threats is to work together. With this indictment, the Disruptive Technology Task Force is a great example of the power of partnerships in action.”
“Those who facilitate the illicit proliferation of sensitive technology and materials to hostile nations or terrorist groups pose a serious threat to the safety and security of the United States,” said Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Deputy Director Katrina W. Berger. “HSI is committed to working with our partners to disrupt and dismantle the criminal networks that aid and facilitate America’s adversaries.”
“Preventing the efforts of foreign countries, international criminal organizations, and other potentially hostile entities to illegally obtain sensitive Department of Defense technology and weapons systems that could be used against our military is a top priority for the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the criminal investigative arm of the Department of Defense’s Office of Inspector General,” said DoD Inspector General Robert P. Storch. “We will continue to work with the Department of Justice and our partners in the Strike Forces to disrupt the activities of criminal elements that threaten the security of our nation.”
United States v. Postvoy (DC)
A federal grand jury has handed up a seven-count indictment against Denis Postovoy, a Russian national resident of the United States, charging him with violating the Export Control Reform Act, smuggling, money laundering, and conspiring to defraud the United States. HSI arrested Postovoy this morning in Sarasota, Florida.
According to court documents, beginning at least February 2022, after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Postovoy obtained military-use microelectronic components from the United States and illegally exported them to Russia. The exported microelectronics could be used in unmanned aerial vehicles and drones. Through a network of companies owned or operated in Russia, Hong Kong, and other locations, Postovoy and individuals in his network purchased microelectronics from U.S.-based distributors and exported them to Russia without obtaining the required authorization from the Department of Commerce.
Allegedly, Postboy’s companies included Hong Kong-based WowCube HK Limited, JST Group Hong Kong, Jove HK Limited, and Russia’s Vector Group. Postboy repeatedly concealed and misrepresented the true end users and final destinations of the microelectronics by submitting false information on export documentation. He transshipped the goods ultimately destined for Russia through transit points including Hong Kong, Switzerland and other locations and received payments in U.S. dollars from foreign bank accounts. His companies transferred funds for the purchase and shipment of the goods from bank accounts in Hong Kong, Russia and other locations to U.S. bank accounts, including bank accounts controlled by U.S. suppliers of microelectronics and other sensitive technologies.
The FBI and HSI are investigating the incident.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart Allen for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Sean Hayden of the National Security Agency’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.
United States v. Son Woo (Northern District of Georgia)
Today in federal court in Atlanta, Song Wu, a 39-year-old Chinese national, was indicted on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft for allegedly attempting to illegally obtain computer software and source code created by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a research university, and private companies. Song remains a fugitive.
According to the indictment, Song engaged in a multi-year “spear phishing” email campaign, creating email accounts to impersonate U.S.-based researchers and engineers, and using the fake accounts to obtain specialized, restricted or proprietary software used in aerospace engineering and computational fluid dynamics that can have industrial and military applications, including the development of advanced tactical missiles and the aerodynamic design and evaluation of weapons.
In carrying out this scheme, Song allegedly sent spear phishing emails to employees at U.S. government agencies, including NASA, the Air Force, the Navy, the Army and the Federal Aviation Administration. Song also sent spear phishing emails to employees at major research universities in Georgia, Michigan, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio, as well as private companies active in the aerospace sector. Song’s spear phishing emails appeared to the targeted victims to have been sent by colleagues, associates, friends, or other individuals in the research or engineering community. Song’s emails requested that he send or provide source code or software to which he believed the targeted victims had access.
According to the indictment, at the time he conducted the spear phishing attacks, Song was working as an engineer for Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), a Beijing-based state-owned aerospace and defense conglomerate that manufactures civilian and military aircraft and is one of the world’s largest defense contractors.
In total, Song is charged with 14 counts of wire fraud and 14 counts of aggravated identity theft. If convicted, he faces a maximum statutory prison term of 20 years for each wire fraud count. Song also faces a consecutive two-year sentence for each aggravated identity theft count. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI and NASA’s Office of Inspector General are investigating the incident.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Samir Kaushal for the Northern District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Tanner Krueger of the National Security Agency’s Cyber Section are prosecuting the case, with assistance from the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
United States v. Teslenko (Massachusetts)
Samer Bambani, 55, of Massachusetts, and Maxim Teslenko, 35, a Russian national, were charged with smuggling, violating and evading export controls, smuggling, and conspiring to defraud the U.S. Bambani was arrested on September 9 and released on conditions after his initial appearance in federal court in Boston. Teslenko remains a fugitive overseas.
Bambani and Teslenko are accused of conspiring from approximately 2015 through at least 2021 to export laser welding machines from Bambani’s U.S. employer to Ural Electromechanical Plant (UEMZ) in Yekaterinburg, Russia, and falsifying export documents submitted to the U.S. government to conceal the fact that UEMZ was the true end user of the machines. UEMZ was a subsidiary of Rosatom, a Moscow-based Russian state corporation that oversaw Russia’s civilian and military nuclear programs. According to the indictment, Teslenko knew the laser welding machines were intended for portions of UEMZ related to Russia’s nuclear weapons program.
The smuggling charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, three years probation, and a maximum fine of $250,000. The conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, three years probation, and a maximum fine of $250,000. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Massachusetts Timothy H. Kistner and Laura S. Kaplan, along with Trial Attorney Sean O’Dowd of the National Security Agency’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, are prosecuting the case.
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Today’s activity was coordinated through the Department of Justice and Department of Commerce’s Disruptive Technology Strike Force. The Disruptive Technology Strike Force is an interagency law enforcement task force jointly led by the Departments of Justice and Commerce that aims to target illegal actors, protect supply chains, and prevent authoritarian regimes and hostile nation states from acquiring critical technologies. The investigation of Postovoy and Teslenko was also coordinated through the Department of Justice’s Task Force Klepto-Capture, an interagency law enforcement task force specializing in the enforcement of sanctions, export controls, and economic countermeasures imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine.
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Also today, the State Department unsealed an indictment in Chicago, Illinois, charging Jia Wei, a Chinese national, with illegally accessing the computer network of a U.S. telecommunications company and stealing proprietary information for the benefit of a China-based company.
The indictment, complaint and criminal information are merely allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Updated September 16, 2024
