Morristown at the Center of an International Conspiracy Case

3/14/2022 –

According to Reuters, FBI Special Agent Marcus Wondergem testified on Monday, 3/14/2022, that Chinese nationals who were brought to the United States under research visas went to work for ZTE Corp in Morristown, NJ.

ZTE Corporation, a Chinese partially state-owned technology company that specializes in telecommunication, is on probation from its guilty plea admitting to illegally shipping American technology to Iran.

Both former and current employees were summoned to the courtroom of US District Judge Ed Kinkeade over potential violations involving conspiracy to commit visa fraud.

At a hearing at Federal Court in Dallas, TX, FBI Special Agent Wondergem said Chinese nationals came to the United States on claims that they would be doing research at the lab of Georgia Tech professor Gee-Kung Chang but spent little time at the lab and moved to apartments in Morristown, NJ near ZTE.

Months apparently went by without the visa holders visiting the Georgia Tech lab.

Gee-Kung Chang and Jianjun Yu, a former ZTE research director in NJ, are accused of conspiring to bring Chinese nationals to the U.S. to conduct research at ZTE between 2014 and 2018. The Chinese nationals were in the U.S. on J-1 visas, intended for work-study at sponsoring institutions like Georgia Tech.

During his testimony, Wondergem said he checked lab logs and secured leases from apartments in Morristown. On cross-examination, Wondergem acknowledged that Georgia Tech was responsible for the accuracy of the visa applications and noted that “research scholars” are permitted to work at more than one location.

Wondergem also noted that neither ZTE nor any U.S. subsidiary was indicted.

Lawyers for ZTE said, Yu, a professor at Shanghai’s Fudan University, recommended former students to Georgia Tech. Yu describes student work at ZTE as an “informal internship.” ZTE lawyers continued to argue that Georgia Tech is responsible for visas and the conduct of scientists and engineers in the U.S.

Prosecutors argue that Yu and Chang used visas as a cheaper, faster, and easier way to get foreign nationals into the U.S. to work.

ZTE now awaits the judge’s ruling after the U.S. probation hearing.

*All are considered not guilty until proven otherwise

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