A former U.S. Navy sailor was sentenced to 200 months in federal prison Monday after a jury convicted him of espionage for selling sensitive national defense information to a Chinese intelligence officer.
Jinchao Wei, 25, also known as Patrick Wei, was arrested in August 2023 as he arrived for work aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Essex at Naval Base San Diego. He was indicted on charges of selling national defense information to an intelligence officer of the People’s Republic of China in exchange for more than $12,000.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said: “Members of the United States military swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. This active-duty U.S. Navy sailor betrayed his country and compromised the national security of the United States. The Justice Department will not tolerate this behavior.”
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg added: “Wei swore loyalty to the United States when he joined the Navy and reaffirmed that oath when he became a citizen. He then accepted the solemn responsibility of protecting this Nation’s secrets when the United States entrusted him with sensitive Navy information. He made a mockery of these commitments when he chose to endanger our Nation and our servicemembers by selling U.S. military secrets to a Chinese intelligence officer for personal profit. Today’s sentence reflects our commitment to ensuring those who sell our Nation’s secrets pay a very high price for their betrayal.”
Following a five-day trial in August 2025, a federal jury convicted Wei of six counts, including conspiracy to commit espionage, espionage, and unlawful export of, and conspiracy to export, technical data related to defense articles in violation of the Arms Export Control Act and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. He was acquitted on one count of naturalization fraud.
Evidence at trial showed that Wei, serving as a machinist’s mate with a U.S. security clearance, had access to sensitive information about the Essex’s weapons, propulsion, and desalination systems.
On February 14, 2022, Wei was recruited via social media by a Chinese intelligence officer posing as a naval enthusiast employed by a state-owned shipbuilding corporation. Wei quickly suspected the contact’s true identity, telling a fellow sailor on February 22, 2022, that he believed he was “on the radar of a China intelligence organization” and that the requests for information on ship maintenance and pier locations constituted “quite obviously fucking espionage.”
Instead of reporting the contact, Wei switched to encrypted messaging the next day and began providing information. Between March 2022 and his arrest in August 2023, Wei sent photographs and videos of the Essex, reported locations of Navy ships, described defensive weapons, and transmitted thousands of pages of technical and operational data from restricted Navy computer systems, including at least 60 technical and operating manuals containing export-control warnings.
Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division said: “Wei betrayed the trust placed in him as a member of the U.S. Navy by knowingly transmitting sensitive military information to a Chinese intelligence officer. This sentencing demonstrates the FBI’s unwavering commitment to protect sensitive national defense information.”
U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon stated: “He betrayed his oath, his shipmates, the United States Navy, and the American people — a level of disloyalty that strikes at the heart of our national security and demanded this powerful sentence.”
During a post-arrest interview, Wei admitted to sharing thousands of pages of manuals and export-controlled data, acknowledged knowing his actions were wrong, and described the activity as “espionage.” He told agents: “I’m screwed.”
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California and the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
