Four charged in $3.9 million scheme to smuggle advanced Nvidia AI chips to China through fake Florida real estate company
By isabelle // 2025-11-21
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  • Two U.S. citizens and two Chinese nationals were charged for smuggling advanced Nvidia AI chips to China.
  • They used a fake Florida real estate company as a front to conceal their illegal export activities.
  • The sophisticated scheme routed the restricted microchips through Malaysia and Thailand to hide their final destination.
  • Authorities allege the operation was funded with millions of dollars sent from entities in China and Hong Kong.
  • The case highlights the ongoing tech Cold War and the high stakes of controlling critical AI technology.
In the shadows of the ongoing tech cold war, a sophisticated smuggling ring has been operating, funneling the very brains of artificial intelligence from American soil directly to a strategic adversary. Federal authorities have now slammed the door, charging four individuals in a brazen scheme to illegally export advanced Nvidia microchips, the powerful engines behind modern AI, to China in direct violation of U.S. national security laws. The Department of Justice unsealed an indictment this week detailing charges against two U.S. citizens and two Chinese nationals. The accused are Hon Ning Ho, 34, and Brian Curtis Raymond, 46, both U.S. citizens, alongside Chinese nationals Cham Li, 38, and Jing Chen, 45. They face a litany of charges including conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act, smuggling, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. This case strikes at the heart of a critical technological battleground. The United States has implemented strict export controls on cutting-edge graphics processing units (GPUs) because, as the indictment notes, China is developing supercomputing capabilities for its militarization efforts. This includes the design and testing of weapons and the advancement of its sophisticated surveillance tools.

A "deliberate and deceptive effort"

Authorities allege the conspiracy ran from September 2023 through November 2025. The defendants are accused of creating an elaborate front to conceal their activities. At the center was a Tampa-based company called Janford Realtor, owned by Ho and Li. Despite its name, the company was never involved in real estate. Instead, it acted as a storefront to purchase the restricted technology. “The indictment unsealed yesterday alleges a deliberate and deceptive effort to transship controlled Nvidia GPUs to China by falsifying paperwork, creating fake contracts, and misleading U.S. authorities,” Assistant Attorney General John A. Eisenberg said in a statement. The operation relied on shipping the sensitive technology through third countries, specifically Malaysia and Thailand, to hide its final destination in China. The scheme saw significant success before law enforcement intervention. Prosecutors state that approximately 400 Nvidia A100 GPUs were successfully exported to China in two separate shipments between October 2024 and January 2025. This older, yet still highly advanced, model is a workhorse for AI development and is squarely restricted for export to China. The plot, however, was not without its setbacks. Two subsequent, and even more advanced, shipments were “disrupted by law enforcement and therefore not completed.” These attempted exports involved 10 Hewlett Packard Enterprise supercomputers containing even more powerful Nvidia H100 GPUs and 50 separate state-of-the-art Nvidia H200 GPUs. The technological stakes of this cat-and-mouse game could not be higher.

Direct funding from China

Funding for the multi-million dollar operation allegedly came directly from China. The indictment states the defendants received more than $3.89 million in wire transfers from Chinese entities. One transaction in March 2025 involved a staggering $1.15 million sent from a Hong Kong-based company to an account belonging to Raymond’s Alabama-based electronics company, which supplied the chips. Nvidia, the company at the center of this technological struggle, maintains that its compliance systems are robust. A company spokesperson stated, “Even small sales of older generation products on the secondary market are subject to strict scrutiny and review.” The spokesperson added that “trying to cobble together datacenters from smuggled products is a nonstarter, both technically and economically.” This case is part of a broader pattern of enforcement. Just months ago, two other Chinese nationals in California were charged in a separate but similar scheme, highlighting the persistent efforts to circumvent American export controls. The response from Capitol Hill has been swift, with calls for even stronger measures to protect this vital technology.

The high stakes of silicon supremacy

Representative John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, used the arrests to call for urgent passage of the Chip Security Act. “China recognizes the superiority of American AI innovation and will do whatever it must to catch up,” he said. The proposed bill would mandate location tracking for advanced AI chips and increase reporting requirements. As these four individuals begin their journey through the U.S. justice system, their case serves as a reminder of the immense value and strategic importance of a handful of silicon. As the quest for technological dominance heats up, the battle is not just fought in research labs and corporate boardrooms, but also in the clandestine world of international shipping routes and shell companies, where the future of global power is quietly, and illegally, being trafficked. Sources for this article include: TheEpochTimes.com ABCNews.go.com Wired.com Justice.gov
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