Twenty-Three-Year Veteran Sold Aerospace Secrets to the Chinese
A former U.S. Army helicopter pilot turned-civilian-contractor has pleaded guilty of selling American aerospace technology to China’s communist government and making related false statements during security background checks.
Shapour Moinian, 67, of San Diego, served in the U.S. Army from 1977 through 2000. Upon retiring from military service Moinian worked for various cleared defense contractors and the U.S. Department of Defense. The term cleared identifies an individual or entity permitted to work on projects involving classified information.
According to his plea agreement, Moinian—while working as a cleared contractor on various U.S. military and U.S. intelligence agency aviation projects—acquired sensitive materials from his U.S. employers and sold them to China.
In March of 2017, Moinian travelled to Hong Kong, where he accepted approximately $7,000-$10,000 in United States currency in exchange for information and materials pertaining to multiple types of aircraft designed and/or manufactured in the U.S. Moinian has admitted to knowing that the individuals to whom he provided the information on that, and subsequent occasions were employed directly or directed by the government of the People’s Republic of China.
Upon returning to the United States, Moinian redoubled his efforts to clandestinely gather sensitive, aviation-related materials.
In September, 2017, he traveled to Shanghai, where met with Chinese government officials to whom he provided a thumb drive containing proprietary information from a U.S. defense contractor.
Thereafter, Chinese payments for Moinian‘s illicit information were routed through a South Korean bank account belonging to his stepdaughter. Moinian falsely informed the stepdaughter that the funds were payment for overseas consulting work and instructed her to transfer the funds to him in multiple transactions.
Moinian‘s Chinese handlers also provided him a cell phone and other equipment by which to communicate with them and aid in the electronic transfer of materials and information.
Throughout the ensuing years, at rendezvous in Bali and Hong Kong, Moinian sold secrets to and collected significant monies from Chinese nationals. In 2019–after one such meeting, Moinian and his wife smuggled $22,000 in cash back into the United States.
At sentencing, Moinian faces a maximum penalty of ten-years in prison and fine up to $250,000 for acting as an agent of a foreign government, and up to five-years and a $250,000 fine for making false statements during background checks. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 29.
Moinian’s case was investigated by the FBI and the NCIS, and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California and the Department of Justice’s National Security Division.
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