U.S. justice department secures prison term, forfeiture in Chinese money laundering case

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US secures prison in laundering case

Highlights

Shu Jun Zhen, 31, was sentenced to nine years in prison and ordered to forfeit nearly $23 million for laundering drug proceeds linked to China-Mexico networks.
Zhen acted as a courier for a Chinese money laundering organization that laundered over $92 million, directly handling about $23 million in illicit bulk cash for shell companies.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative targeting transnational criminal organizations by disrupting their financial infrastructure and supply chains.

Sentencing and case details

As reported by the U.S. Department of Justice, Shu Jun Zhen, 31, of New York, was sentenced in the Western District of North Carolina to nine years in prison and ordered to forfeit nearly $23 million for her role in a Chinese money laundering organization tied to drug trafficking proceeds entering the U.S., primarily through Mexico.

Prosecutors said the organization laundered more than $92 million in illicit funds, and that Zhen acted as a prolific courier within the network. Court documents state that she collected drug proceeds from U.S.-based traffickers and deposited the cash into shell company bank accounts using both real and false identities. Authorities said she personally picked up and deposited about $23 million in illicit bulk cash.

In July 2025, Zhen pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy, one count of money laundering to conceal the nature, location, source, ownership and control of illicit proceeds, and one count of engaging in a monetary transaction involving criminally derived property greater than $10,000. She admitted that she knew the laundered funds included drug trafficking proceeds.

Task force enforcement and broader impact

Justice Department officials said the sentence marks the second significant punishment handed down to a defendant linked to the same Chinese money laundering organization. Senior federal officials described such networks as a critical support system for transnational drug cartels because they help move and conceal profits that sustain trafficking operations.

The investigation is being led by the DEA Charlotte District Office and the IRS Criminal Investigation Charlotte Field Office, with assistance from the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution is being handled by trial attorneys from the Criminal Division's Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section and assistant U.S. attorneys for the Western District of North Carolina.

The case forms part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative, a broader U.S. government effort aimed at dismantling cartels, foreign gangs and other transnational criminal organizations. Federal authorities say the initiative focuses on disrupting entire criminal supply chains, including the financial infrastructure that allows narcotics trafficking groups to operate.

Our earlier report on NAFDAC’s crackdown on counterfeit and non-compliant goods in Nigeria described how the regulator destroyed unsafe products worth about N22.73 billion within eight months as part of tighter oversight of the food and drug supply chain. It highlighted growing compliance risks for importers, distributors, and retailers as authorities step up seizures to keep harmful goods out of circulation and protect consumers.

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