Truck drivers, logistics executives and warehouse owners are among nine people who face charges in what authorities say was a conspiracy to import $200 million worth of counterfeit and other illegal goods from China into the United States through the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.
A 15-count indictment unsealed Friday alleges the defendants unloaded contraband from containers slated for secondary inspection and filled them with other cargo to get them through customs.
Eight people have been arrested, and a ninth is a fugitive, the Justice Department said in a statement Monday. Seven defendants pleaded not guilty in federal court, and the eighth person in custody is to be arraigned soon, the statement said. A trial date has been set for March 18. The charges include conspiracy, smuggling and breaking customs seals.
Authorities have seized contraband valued at $130 million – including $20 million worth of counterfeit shoes and other clothing, luxury handbags, watches, and perfume from a single warehouse. The indictment states that the smuggling took place from August 2023 through June 2024.
“Secure seaports and borders are critical to our national security,” acting U.S. Attorney Joseph T. McNally said in the statement. “The smuggling of huge amounts of contraband from China through our nation’s largest port hurts American businesses and consumers.”
Investigators said they have seized goods worth $1.3 billion in this and other “seal-swapping” operations.
“Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Los Angeles and its partners are committed to enforcing customs laws and practices, facilitating legitimate trade, and protecting the integrity of the nation’s supply chain,” said HSI Los Angeles Special Agent in Charge Eddy Wang. “The $1.3 billion dollars’ worth of contraband seized during the investigation into this type of scheme illuminates how complex smuggling schemes try to exploit our legitimate trade practices and the American consumer.”
The defendants charged are:
- Weijun Zheng, 57, aka “Sonic,” of Diamond Bar, California, the lone fugitive in the case, who controls several logistics companies operating in the Los Angeles area.
- Hexi Wang, 32, of El Monte, California, who manages K&P International Logistics LLC, a City of Industry, California-based company that hires commercial truckers to transport shipping containers from the Port of Los Angeles.
- Jin “Mark” Liu, 42, of Irvine, California, owner of K&P International Logistics LLC. Liu managed the finances of one of the warehouses where investigators say contraband was unloaded and issued payments to truck drivers who transported smuggled goods.
- Dong “Liam” Lin, 31, of Hacienda Heights, California, who – along with Zheng – controlled and operated one of the warehouses allegedly used for contraband.
- Marck Anthony Gomez, 49, of West Covina, California, owner and operator of Fannum Trucks LLC, a West Covina-based company that coordinated the movement of shipping containers from the Port of Los Angeles, including large shipments of alleged contraband smuggled into the United States from China.
- Andy Estuardo Castillo Perez, 32, of Apple Valley, California, a driver for M4 Transportation Inc., a Carson, California-based company that transports shipping containers from the Port of Los Angeles.
- Jesse James Rosales, 41, of Apple Valley, who allegedly coordinated truckers from the ports to warehouses.
- Daniel Acosta Hoffman, 41, of Hacienda Heights, who investigators say worked with Rosales to bring cargo containers from the Port of Los Angeles to warehouses.
- Galvin Biao Liufu, 33, of Ontario, California, who allegedly directed and managed truck drivers to bring the contraband into the warehouses.
The indictment states that containers selected for inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection were transported to warehouses or other locations controlled by the defendants. Co-conspirators broke the security seals on the containers and removed the contraband, then placed counterfeit seals on the containers, which were then returned for inspection.
“It was a team of CBP agriculture specialists assigned to the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport who in 2023, during a routine examination of a container, made the initial discovery,” said Cheryl Davies, CBP director of field operations in Los Angeles. “This case attests to their unwavering vigilance, utmost professionalism, and keen focus in protecting the integrity of lawful trade, a key component of our critical national security mission.”
The defendants face up to five years in federal prison on each conspiracy count, up to 10 years for each count of breaking seals and up to 20 years on each smuggling count.
Coast Guard Investigative Services is assisting in the investigation.
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