SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A San Diego-based Navy sailor accused of selling military secrets to the People's Republic of China will be back in federal court Thursday.
Jinchao Wei, also known as Patrick Wei, was arrested last August on suspicion of espionage and was ordered to be held in custody. He faces charges of receiving bribes in exchange for transmitting sensitive U.S. military information.
Wei is scheduled to appear for an arraignment in downtown San Diego at 2 p.m. for what is known as a superseding indictment, because there could be new evidence and new charges added Thursday.
Wei was an active-duty sailor on the USS Essex when prosecutors said he sent photos, videos, documents, and more about the ship to a Chinese intelligence officer.
Per prosecutors, the information Wei is accused of sending included:
- Technical data for the U.S.S Essex and other naval ships
- Details on living conditions aboard the Essex
- Manuals for the Essex's weapons systems
- Information regarding its on-board communications
- Information on upcoming U.S. Marines maritime warfare exercises
The Department of Justice said Wei was paid thousands of dollars for selling this information to China.
Gary Barthel, managing partner with the Military Law Center, explained how dangerous sharing this information can be.
"Not only is it information they could use against us, it's also information they could use to beef up their own navy," Barthel said. "You have the military personnel, civilian personnel, and you have dependents of military personnel who are also at those installations. And so it doesn't only present a threat to our military assets, but it also represents a real threat to our military as well the civilians who are associated with them."
