Florida Woman Pleads Guilty After Filing False Submissions in AES

A Jacksonville, Florida, woman pleaded guilty to filing false export information to illegally ship military-related boats and engines to China, the Department of Justice said Sept. 16. Yang Yang submitted false information in the Automated Export System after trying to order seven combat rubber raiding craft with engines from a U.S. manufacturer, the agency said (see 1911040022). She faces a maximum 15-year prison sentence.

Yang ordered the items for her employer, Shanghai Breeze Technology Co. Ltd., but told the U.S. company that the order was destined for United Vision Limited in Hong Kong, the Justice Department said. One of Yang’s Chinese co-workers had told her that U.S. manufacturers would be “more likely” to sell to a company in Hong Kong than in mainland China. By “misrepresenting” which company was buying the equipment, Yang “caused the entry of false information” in AES, DOJ said. Yang’s co-defendant, Zheng Yan, pleaded guilty last month. A trial for two remaining co-defendants, Fan Yang and Ge Songtao, is scheduled to begin Feb. 1, 2021.