Jinchao Wei, a 22-year-old sailor, was arrested on espionage-related charges, specifically conspiracy to provide national defense information to Chinese officials. He is attached to the San Diego-based USS Essex, an amphibious assault ship which is known to operate in the Pacific region, and even waters off Southeast Asia.

In a separate but similar case, 26-year old Wenhen Zhao was also charged over allegations he handed off sensitive US military videos and photos to Chinese intelligence. The DOJ specified the timeframe for the alleged espionage happened between August 2021 through this May (and possibly beyond). The two sailors, especially Zhao, allegedly provided material exposing classified information related to large-scale US Navy exercise in the Indo-Pacific region.